The life of Robert Laws of Livingstonia; a narrative of missionary adventure and achievement

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THE LIFE OF

ROBERT LAWS

OF LIVINGSTONIA

A NARRATIVE OF MISSIONARY
ADVENTURE AND ACHIEVEMENT

BY

W. P. LIVINGSTONE

AUTHOR OF "MARY SLESSOR OF CALABAR," "THE

WHITE QUEEN OF OKOYONG," "CHRISTINA

FORSYTH OF FINGOLAND," ETC

ILLUSTRATED

NEW >CEJP YORK
GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY

-yhe.0 f?t<-

Boston University
Sohool of Theology Librae

&V 363-5
IS

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

It is not by the will of Dr. Laws that this sketch of his career
is published before he has accomplished his life-work. No man
dislikes publicity more or anything that savours of self-advertise-
ment. His conception of a perfect biography is, " Enoch walked
with God, and he was not, for God took him." To all appeals
from publishers and editors he has turned a deaf ear. The idea
of this book was repugnant to him, and it was only the extra-
personal considerations of the needs of Livingstonia and the foreign
mission field generally that induced him to waive his objections.

In view of.the approaching Jubilee of the Livingstonia Mission —
it was founded in 1874 — the Foreign Mission Committee of the
United Free Church believed that an account of the enterprise,
written round the man associated with it from the beginning,
would be useful in creating fresh interest in it amongst a generation
which knows little or nothing about the early days or the remarkable
results since achieved. Dr. Laws admitted the force of this point.
" As a boy," he wrote, " the lives of Moffat, Livingstone, and others
did much to develop my missionary aspirations, and it may be
that in the providence of God this story of Livingstonia may help
some girls and boys whom God is calling to His service in the
future."

He made two stipulations : that the bare and unadorned truth
should be written, and that all the glory and praise should be given
to God. A faithful effort has been made to fulfil these conditions.

It was characteristic of him that having surrendered to a duty
he surrendered completely : he placed at the disposal of the author
all the available material in his possession. For half a century he
has methodically filed every letter he has received and a copy of
every one he has written, and since he entered Africa has kept
every document bearing on the work of the Mission. As these
forty-six years have been crowded with incident and administrative
activity, the accumulation has assumed vast proportions. The
author does not profess to have gone through it all. Nor was this

iv LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

necessary for the purpose of the popular biography he was commis-
sioned to write. His aim has been to give a straightforward narra-
tive of the chief events in the Doctor's career, with the emphasis
laid more upon the pioneer days as being less known, and touching
lightly on the later years, which were largely occupied with the
development of mission policy and the treatment of African social
questions. As it is, he has read over 13,000 pages of letters, which
is probably less than half the total quantity.

The book, therefore, is not to be regarded as a complete record
of the Doctor's life and work, nor, naturally, is it so intimate a
study as, in other circumstances, it might have been. Neither is it
a history of the Livingstonia Mission, which is a much larger
enterprise than is generally supposed. The area it covers in
Northern Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia is so extensive that
not one of the missionaries has been over the entire field, not even
Dr. Laws himself — it would be easier for him to travel to Scotland
than to reach the remoter stations. Some idea of the magnitude
of the work may be gathered from the fact that one particular
missionary has to cover a distance of 2000 miles in order to visit
all his schools. The various stations are situated amongst different
tribes speaking different languages, and they face different condi-
tions and problems ; and the men who have started and developed
the work at each have all had notable careers of their own.

Here we follow the central figure whose life-story supplies
sufficient romance and adventure for one volume. Studying it in
days when heroic effort and fortitude have become commonplace,
one recovers the sense of wonder of what the human soul is capable
of enduring. Few men in the missionary spheres of the world can
have fought so long and gallant a fight against adverse conditions
or achieved, single-handed, so much. Of him one might almost say
in the words of John Ruskin, " He did this, nor will ever another
do its like again."

It is necessary to add that Dr. Laws has read neither the MS.
nor the proofs of the book and is unaware of what it contains ;
the author alone is responsible for all that is written.

The work is the property of the Foreign Mission Committee of
the United Free Church of Scotland, and the profits from the sale
are to be devoted to the Livingstonia Mission.

To those who have kindly supplied photographs, the thanks of
the Committee are cordially extended.

CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

The Explorer's Dreams

PAGE
I

PART ONE
THE YEARS OF PREPARATION
I. Childhood
II. The Poor Apprentice .

III. The Influence of a Smile

IV. Bench Culture .
V. Student and Artisan .

VI. Plain Living :- High Thinking
VII. The Priest of Death .
VIII. A Street Decoy.
IX. The Committee's Smile
X. Making Ready .
XI. Outward Bound

ii

14
17
19
21

25
27

32
35
40

44

PART TWO
THE YEARS OF SETTLEMENT
I. At the Mouth of the Zambezi
II. A Minor Tragedy ....

49
53

vi

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

III. Lost in a Lake

IV. A Gigantic Zoological Garden
V. The Man without Hands

VI. The Cataracts March
VII. Two Sinister Figures
VIII. Dawn on Lake Nyasa
IX. Boarding a Dhow .
X. An Experimental Station
XI. A Voyage of Exploration
XII. Grim Days

XIII. The Doctor's Retreat

XIV. Chiefs, Friendly and Unfriendly
XV. The Mystery of Elephant Island

XVI. First Chloroform Case .
XVII. A Prisoner of Hope
XVIII. Filling the Pot
XIX. Reinforcements
XX. An Appeal from Blantyre
XXI. Two Strangers on the River
XXII. A Terrible Night .

XXIII. Three Deaths

XXIV. Black Ivory .
XXV. The Wild Ngoni

XXVI. An Expert Criminal
XXVII. The Land of the Go-Nakeds
XXVIII. A New Year Dinner

CONTENTS

vii

XXIX.

Man-of-War Discipline ....

FAGE
. 134

XXX.

Word Nuggets .....

■ 139

XXXI.

The Beginning of Trade

143

XXXII.

A Critical Poison Test ....

. 145

XXXIII.

Coal .......

. 151

XXXIV.

Zulu Potentates . .

154

XXXV.

In Mombera's Cattle Kraal .

159

XXXVI.

The First White Lady at the Lake . ,

I64

XXXVII.

The Blantyre Controversy

. I69

XXXVIII.

Fugitives ......

174

XXXIX.

The Shadow Again ....

176

XL.

The First Convert ....

179

XLI.

Failure or Success? .

183

PART THREE

. THE YEARS OF PERIL

I. New Conditions ....
II. A Midnight Alarm

III. A Peace Mirandu.

IV. Strange Days in Ngoniland .
V. Native Impressions

VI. Massacre .....
VII. Looking Forward One Hundred Years
VIII. A Bitter Cry ....
IX. Henry Drummond
X. Panic .....

185
191
194

i97
202
204
207
209
212
215

Vlll

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XI. Home Travel .
XII. A Birth on the River

XIII. A Harvest of Death

XIV. Crisis
XV. Prisoners

XVI. Victory .
XVII. War with the Arab Slavers
XVIII. Lord Salisbury says "No"

XIX. Spade Work and Illness .
XX. The Coming of Government

PART FOUR
THE YEARS OF PROGRESS
I. Home and America .
II. In Calabar

III. The Friendliness of Rhodes

IV. In Search of a Site .
V. Attacked by Lions

VI. The Island Plateau .
VII. A Fight for Land
VIII. End of the Slavers .
IX. The Doctor as Editor
X. Nature's Cruelty
XI. Work and Faith
XII. A Contrast in Ngoniland

XIII. Student of Electricity

XIV. Semi-Jubilee .

CONTENTS

IX

PAGE

XV. Magic Water

• 303

XVI. ^5000 for a Hospital

. 306

XVII. The Industrial Gospel .

. 311

XVIII. A Political Triumph

• 314

XIX. The Romance of the West

. 316

XX. Dark Days .

. 321

XXI. Silver Wedding

• 327

XXII. With Honour Crowned .

• 33o

XXIII. Moderator's Year .

> 334

XXIV. The Awesome Hospital

• 339

XXV. Legislator

. 344

XXVI. High-Water Mark .

• 347

XXVII. The World War .

. 348

XXVIII. A Native Spasm

• 352

XXIX. New Work .

. 355

XXX. The Doctor's Environment

• 358

XXXI. Round the Station

. 362

XXXII. A Talk on Ulendo .

. 368

XXXIII. The Crown of All.

• 372

EPILOGUE

Past and Present

375

Index .

. 381

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Robert Laws .

The Ilala on the Zambezi ....

Plan of the Ilala .....

A Haunt of Crocodiles : On the Lower Shire1

Where the Shire meets the Zambezi

Sketch Map of Cape Maclear

The Last of Dr. Livingstone's Makololo

The Cemetery at Cape Maclear .

The Cape Maclear Cottages, including the Double-Decker

Lake Nyasa ......

Lake Dwellings seen by Dr. Laws

Mlolo and his Boy .....

William Koyi ......

Albert Namalambe : The First Convert in the Livingstonia Mission
An Original Ngoni who crossed the Zambezi — A Professing

Christian ........

Bandaw£ Harbour : where the Station was first established
Where the Ilala anchored : The Scene To-day, showing how the

Lake has receded ....

Sketch Map of Bandawe District
The Nyasa Hippopotamus ....
A View of the Lake Shore, showing how the Huts are spread

along the beach ....

Five Chiefs who met Dr. Livingstone when he first landed at

Bandawe .......

The First Exploring Journey : A Halt by the Way .
The Ngoni Embassy to Bandawe ....

Mrs. Laws .......

Miss A. Nyasa Laws ......

Typical Ngoni Girls .....

A Living Fence ......

The Manchewe and Kaziche Waterfalls at Livingstonia
The Tent torn by the Lion ....

A Type of Poka Hut on the High Hills . .

Frontispiece

FACING PAGE

xii

xu
xii
I
48
49
49
64
64
64
65
65
65

65
96

96
97
97

112
"3

"3
144

144

145

145
160
161
161

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PACING PAGR

Huts of Refugees at the Manchewe Falls .... 192

The Jetty at Florence Bay, with Mount Waller behind

One of the Caves in which the Poka lived, with Waterfall in

Front ......

"Close on 7000 persons packed into the enclosure

An Organ being dragged up from the Lake, 1900

Another Organ being taken up, 1905 .

Livingstonia Plateau

A View on the Longmuir Road .

The Doctor crossing the River Rukuru

Travelling in a Machila .

A Mlanje Cedar Wood

The Quarry at the Institution .

The First Boy trained as a Telegraphist

Carpenter Apprentices who walked 10,000 miles to the Institution

at Livingstonia to educate themselves and learn a Trade
Yoram Mpande ......

Ngoni Chief and his Headman, of the Present Day

Livingstonia G.P.O., built by the Schoolboys

The Main Avenue, with the European Cottages beyond

The Doctor beginning a Village School

The School in being: Dr. Laws in the Distance

Above the Clouds : View from Livingstonia .

Rev. A. G. MacAlpine, Rev. Dr. Elmslie, Rev. Dr. Laws; Yesaya

Hezekiah, Jonathan
The Doctor working at his Office Desk
Among the Hollyhocks
The Stevenson Stone
Blantyre Church, built by Natives
Chilembwe's Church being blown up by the Military
"The Illuminated Clock"
The Present Marenga
The Manse on the Edge of the Plateau
Another View ....

The Industrial Block
The Doctor's Plan of Karonga Church
A Ngoni War Dance of the Present Day
A Patient in the Hospital attends Communion
The Doctor examining Work in the Printing Office
Two Native Preachers — Edward Boti, Pastor at Livingstonia

Yuraia Chirwa, Capitao of the Station .... 353
The Doctor inspecting the New Church .... 353

Map ... ... At end

WORKS BY ROBERT LAWS

M.A., M.D., D.D, F.R.G.S., F.R.S.G.S. (Hon.) «

1879. Journey along the Western Side of Lake Nyasa in
1878. Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society.
May 1879.

,, Nyanja Hymns. Blantyre Mission Press.

1881. Nyanja School Primer. Lovedale. 2nd Edition, Edinburgh,

18S4.

,, ,, ,, Teachers' Edn. Livingstonia Press.

,, ,, ,, 4th Edition. Livingstonia, 1892.

(Several subsequent editions.)

1882. Tonga School Primer. 2nd Edition. Edinburgh, 1888.

„ Translation of Mark's Gospel (Tonga). Livingstonia, 1890.
,, English-Tonga Dictionary and Grammar.
(Not printed.)

1883. Translation of Mark's Gospel (Nyanja). Lovedale.

(Edition destroyed during an attack by natives on a Portuguese
station on the Lower Shire.)

„ Translation of John's Gospel (Nyanja). Edinburgh.

,, First Nyanja Reader. Edinburgh : Nelson.

1885. Translation of Four Gospels (Nyanja). Edinburgh.

„ Translation of New Testament (Nyanja). Edinburgh.

,, Notes on Bantu Tribes of Central Africa. British
Association, Aberdeen.

„ Table of Concords and Paradigm of Nyanja Verb.
Edinburgh.

1886. Women's Work in Livingstonia. Paisley : Parlane.

j, Gunda- English and English -Gunda Vocabularies.
Edinburgh.

1887. Nyanja Hymn Book. Blantyre, 1887.

1888. Second Nyanja Reader. Edinburgh: Nelson.

1891. Introductory School Grammar. Livingstonia.

1891. Editor of Collection for the Mwamba Language.
By the late Rev. J. A. Bain, M.A. Livingstonia.

1894. English and Nyanja Dictionary and Grammar.
Edinburgh : James Thin.

By Mrs. LAWS

Translation of Harry's Catechism in Nyanja.
Edinburgh, 1886.

A number of Hymns and Songs also in Nyanja.

Plan of the Ilala, showing where the Members of the
Expedition slept

A Haunt of Crocodiles: On the Lower Shire

S c

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

PROLOGUE

The Explorer's Dreams

Ever since its vast bulk rose above the ocean the continent of
Africa has been associated with the mysterious and the weird.
Entered and occupied when the human race was young what
occurred in the heart of it then is the secret of the past : it is a
land where there is no remembrance of former things. In the half-
lights lying about the beginning of history we see some parts of it,
in the north, settled and civilized — Egypt, in its day, was a world-
power and a focus of science and culture. It is linked with the
advent of Christianity — Jesus, as related in the Scripture story, being
taken to it as an infant, and Simon of Cyrene carrying His cross
when He was led to Calvary, whilst the Church founded in His name
took hold and prospered along its Mediterranean border. But as
a whole, although situated in the centre of the world's activities,
it remained for long unpenetrated, the greatest of geographical
problems and the theme of endless speculation and fable.

Civilization never ceased to nibble at its edges. Along its
coast -line ships of successive periods crept, feeling their way round
the headlands, exploring the deltas and creeks, establishing rela-
tions with the dark-skinned natives, and collecting ivory and gold-
dust. Here and there mediaeval pioneers planted a fort, a trading
colony, or a mission station. To these came floating down from the
interior tales of natural marvels, of great sheets of shining water
and white mountains piercing the sky, which increased the spell
cast over the land and challenged the curiosity and daring of the
adventurous. Explorers at intervals pushed up the rivers or
through the forests only to be baffled and return little wiser than
when they set out, or not to return at all. Africa resisted all
attempts to investigate and conquer it.

It was its physical character that defied the forces of civiliza-
tion. Across the north stretched a desert of shifting sand-dunes

2 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

stony plains, and rocky tablelands, rainless and pathless, over
which no man dared to venture or did until camels were brought
into service. In the south also were wide waste places, arid and
sterile : the east and west were fringed with wildernesses of man-
grove swamp, water-logged jungle, and sodden grass and forest.
The habitable regions were thronged with naked and savage men
and wild beasts. Worst of all were the invisible enemies against
which no precaution could be taken. The air was foul with miasma,
strange diseases waylaid the traveller, and death was swift. Those
( who settled for a time becam^e_affectedjby^their environment, and
A even missionaries grewslack and corrupt. No power of evocation
could conjure out of such conditions a land favourable for orderly
exploitation, and the European imagination came to regard the
entire country as unsuited to civilized man, and its inhabitants as
sub-human and fit only for a life of servitude and toil.

Slavery of a domestic type was indigenous to Africa ; it origin-
ated in captures in tribal war, but at the touch of the outside world
it developed into an internajtionjdsystem^ofl^napping^for profit,)
the Arabs organizing it on a huge scale to supply the markets off
the East, and Europeans, seeking labour to exploit their tropical]
colonies, extending its scope to the West, and so creating thatl
situation which for sheer misery has never been paralleled in thel
story of human evolution. Africa became the slave-hunting ground J
of the world, and the African the unpaid servant of mankind. J

In the south the line of the unknown was pressed back, but the
vast region of the interior continued closed. Exploration went on
fitfully with small success. Trading blacks and half-castes travelled
far, and even crossed the continent, but they were too ignorant to
be impressed by what they saw, or to record it, and the world learnt
nothing from them. No intelligent eye saw beyond the waste
plains and the dim outline of remote mountains : the silence and
melancholy that seemed the heritage of the land remained un-
broken. When missionaries, moving inland from the east, came
back with verification of the old reports of snow mountains seamed
with glaciers, and repeating the native statements of the existence
of immense lakes and rivers, the world was interested but sceptical
to disbelief.

So hopeless seemed the task of opening up the country, even
towards the middle of the nineteenth century, that Robert Moffat,
the missionary, himself no mean traveller, declared it would long
remain the least explored portion of the earth. When in England
on furlough he met David Livingstone, then waiting for an appoint-

THE EXPLORER'S DREAMS 3

ment to China. Livingstone listened attentively to his story, and
became interested.

" Would I do for Africa ? " he asked.

" I believe you would — if you would go to the unoccupied
ground — to the vast plain to the north, where I have sometimes seen
in the morning sun the smoke of a thousand villages where no
missionary has ever been."

" I will go," Livingstone said, and went.

And it was he who raised the veil of mystery and disclosed the
land in all its beauty and terror. Stationed first in the hinterland
of South Africa he found the conditions there unfavourable for a
permanent settlement and moved northwards in search of a better
site. It turned out to be a quest which ended only with his death.
He succeeded in crossing the desert and penetrated to the centre of
the continent, finding it a revelation of tropical splendour, a land of
mountains and valleys, of forest and meadow, river and waterfall,
teeming with game and populous with native tribes. For the most
part the latter were, friendly and kind, being hostile and rapacious
only where they came into contact with the slave influences of the
coast.

The master idea of the traveller was to discover situations that
would be healthy for mission work, but as he walked through the
vast spaces of the interior his ideas broadened under the impression
of what he saw. Responsible natives were willing to trade, but
their only commodity was the poorer members of the tribes or
captives taken in war. There grew up, therefore, in Livingstone's
mind the conviction that_je£utar J^rad^^

hand with mission work. The couMr^jnust_b^_openedup ; path-
way^^mst^bj^PJJIioL^oJthe^sea.

To discover suitable trade routes became his passion, and he set
out for the west coast. The journey was beset with difficulties,
his way was hindered or barred at every turn, heavy tolls were
extorted by chiefs — exactions that made him regard the tariffs of
civilized nations as relics of savagery — and his life was often in
peril. He found that in this direction no clear passage was possible,
and he returned to the point of his departure and adventured to the
east along the course of the river Zambezi. On the way he heard
of a lake in the interior called Nyasa, which he resolved some day
to find. By and by he emerged among the Portuguese on the
Indian coast with convictions confirmed that the opening up of /
Africa_was_a larger task than could be accomplished by missionary*/
enterprise alone. Missionaries, he realized, were only one of the

4 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

many agents being used to uplift the world, and Christianity and
commerce, the two pioneers of_ civilization, were_ inseparable .
fheiTceforward we find his life and activity adjusted to this line
of thought. Always as he wandered along the plains and plateaux
of the interior his eye examined the unfolding landscape with the
object of noting the most promising sites for white colonies and
mission settlements. Instead of a resident missionary he became a
missionary prospector, a pioneer for civilization, a seer dreaming
spacious dreams of a Christianized and civilized Africa.

When the account of his journeys was published it took the
world by surprise. In the matter-of-fact pages of the Missionary
Travels people had visions of a new and wonderful land, gorgeous
with colour, crowded with strange fauna and flora, and surcharged
with material wealth and possibilities. But it was the wild human
life which most interested Christendom — that black, uncounted
host scattered amongst the hills and plains, dwelling in mud huts
with grass roofs and low doors, debased and superstitious, living no
\ idyllic exjsjtejiceJ^uJM^ strife, slaughter,

and ensla^ementT"

The need of following up Livingstone's discoveries in the interests
of the natives impressed itself upon many minds. One who
pondered the matter with a view to action was an Edinburgh theo-
logical student named James Stewart, but the first practical step
was taken as the result of an impulse imparted by Livingstone's
own voice. Visiting Cambridge to enlist the sympathy of the
University with his scheme he gave two addresses which profoundly
moved those who listened. " I go back," he said, "to try to make
an open path for commerce and Christianity. Do you carry out
the woTkwhichl have*^egun. neavijt^th you-" His appeal
was responded to, and when in Africa againTexpIoring the region of
the Zambezi, he rejoiced to hear that committees had been formed
to promote a Universities Mission.

Lake Nyasa, which he had long wished to discover, at last
stretched before him, encircled by wooded highlands that seemed
to be ideal for mission settlements. A second visit confirmed his
impression. An almost unbroken series of villages lined the shore :
the population was denser than he had seen anywhere else, and, on
the whole, was friendly. One chief, Marenga, " a very fine fellow,"
he noted as a possible ally for missionaries. But the entire district
was in the grip of the Arab slaver, and round the lake and across it
the traffic went on without cessation, over twenty thousand men,
women, and children being conveyed annually to the coast markets

THE EXPLORER'S DREAMS 5

or dying on the way. The more he considered the situation the
more he became convinced that a small steamer cruising on the lake
would better prevent the evil than a squadron of war-vessels pat-
rolling the ocean : it would be a symbol of a power opposed to the
murderous commerce and able to suppress it. His imagination
kindled as he thought of the possibilities of the situation, and in
vision he saw Christian colonies clustered on .the shore and upon the
heights and the tribes being led into habits of industry and ways of
peace.

The report of the discovery of the lake brought young Stewart
into the open with a scheme for a Scottish mission. He first
sounded several fellow-students, and then approached the Foreign
Mission authorities of the Free Church of Scotland, to which he ,
belonged. " We are willing," he said, " to go out and begin a if
mission somewhere in the countries opened by Dr. Livingstone. V
We ask you to send us."

There was a strong missionary interest in the Free Church at that
time. It supported work in several fields abroad, amongst the
Jews, in the colonies, and on the Continent, but its great missions
were those in India and South Africa. India with its romantic
past and historic associations was the favourite sphere, while it
furnished scope for the educational work peculiarly suited to the
national genius. In Africa the missions were to the Kafirs, Fingoes,
and Zulus ; but these people seemed dull and forbidding, and their
land dark and repellent, and less interest was taken in the work
amongst them.

Stewart's proposal was considered so fantastic that it was not
entertained : it was not even placed before the Foreign Mission
Committee. But his ardour and persistence accepted no rebuff :
and in 1861 he succeeded in having the matter considered. The
Committee were cool and critical. Apart from the information
in Dr. Livingstone's book they had no data before them. No
white man was living in the country : there was no means of com-
munication with it — letters from Dr. Livingstone sometimes took a
year or more on the way — they could not commit the Church to so
uncertain an undertaking, nor could they devote the money pro-
vided for India and South Africa to such a purpose. A special fund
would require to be raised, a separate Committee formed. Mean-
while they would write to Dr. Livingstone and obtain his views.

All this failed to damp the spirits of Stewart ; he was the more
determined to proceed since intelligence came that the Universities
Mission expedition had arrived on the Zambezi and had, on the

6 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

suggestion of Dr. Livingstone, gone to the Shire Highlands, where
a pleasant site at Magomero had been selected. Livingstone knew
well the difficult task that lay before them, and was not sanguine
of immediate results, but he had no doubt of ultimate success if
caution and right method guided their action. Gathering together
an influential Committee on which the Foreign Mission Committee
of the Free Church were represented, Stewart secured funds and
went off to Africa to meet Dr. Livingstone and investigate.

He found the explorer, in 1862, on the Zambezi. Livingstone's
keen eye noted the stranger with approval. " I am glad you have
come," he said, and recommended the Nyasa district as the best
centre for a mission ; " but," he added, " come up and see the country
for yourself."

At Shupanga it was learnt that the leaders of the Universities
party had died and that the mission was in difficulties. " A sad
blow," said Livingstone, " but whatever effect it may have at home
I will not swerve one hair's-breadth from my work." Stewart
made his way up-country, explored the Zambezi and Shire valleys,
and reached a point fifty miles from the Lake. He discovered
abundant evidence that slave-hunting, drought, and famine had
ruined the country : it was, he said, a " lonely land of barbarism,
of game and wild beasts, of timid and harried but not unkindly
men." His barter money giving out, he was compelled to return
without having seen the Lake, and reached the coast in rags, soaked
with rain, half dead with fever, and penniless. " I was," he wrote,
" very sick, very poor, very depressed."

When he arrived in Scotland after an absence of nearly two and a
half years, he gave in a report to the Committee which was, on the
whole, discouraging. The country was a good one, but the slave
trade would make a settlement difficult. " I do not," he said, " re-
gard the proposed work as impossible. It can be accomplished,
but at a little greater expense and at the cost of a few lives during
the first few years." Nevertheless the weight of his facts leant
to the adverse side. It was singular that he should have struck so
uncertain a note when he was by nature so courageous and resolute.
It can only be attributed to the state of his health. Africa has
always left a deep mark on its explorers. Stewart came back worn
out by the hardships he had endured and suffering from the over-
mastering depression and lassitude which follow African fever, and
his views were coloured by his condition. Great as h&jvas, he failed
tariseto_the height of Livingstone, who_said, " As for me, I am
detenninejitoM

THE EXPLORER'S DREAMS 7

The character of the report, combined with the intelligence that
the Universities Mission had ended in disaster and was being with-
drawn, so influenced the Committee that without summoning
Stewart to their presence they resolved to drop the project. It
was what Livingstone had feared. None knew better the stern and
tragic realities of the situation, yet he was sorely disappointed : he
thought that Scottish energy and perseverance might have dared all
the difficulties. Stewart he had imagined to be a man whom nothing
could daunt.

Stewart, however, never lost sight of his scheme. After com-
pleting his medical course he was sent by the Foreign Mission Com-
mittee of the Free Church to Lovedale, South Africa, which he was
to make famous, but it was on the understanding that if the way
opened up he should be at liberty to return to Central Africa. With
recovered health he saw he had been wrong in not putting the matter
more encouragingly ; in the clearer light of later days he realized
that he had been faithless ; there had been, he said, " too much
reliance on human help and too little on God's help." Once again
he approached the Foreign Mission Committee on the subject,
but without result.

Livingstone continued to toil at his task of opening up the
country. His third expedition was undertaken chiefly in the
interests of geographical science, though his dominant idea was
the removal of obstacles which blocked the entrance of missionary
and commercial enterprise. To Scotland he still looked for the
faith and courage that would respond to the needs of Africa. On
the way out, at Bombay, he had many talks with Dr. Wilson, one
of the most influential of Free Church missionaries, urging upon him
the duty of his Church to start a mission on the Lake beyond the
sphere of the Portuguese. " A mission to be effective," he wrote to
the officials of the Church, " must have a steamer of its own, made
capable of being unscrewed at the bottom of the cataracts and
carried past them."

On his long last trek he travelled alone. When he arrived again
at Lake Nyasa and saw its gleaming water backed by the high cool
heights that reminded him of the Highlands of his homeland, his
heart was filled with bitterness as he reflected on his shattered hopes.
His dream of a Christian conquest of the country seemed further
from realization than ever. But with a sure instinct he wrote,
" All will come right some day, though I may not live to participate
in the joy or even see the commencement of better times." Then

8 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

he climbed slowly up the wooded gorges and disappeared in the
vast tract of unknown country to the west where slave-catching
was in full blast. What he saw haunted his mind like the disordered
scenes of a nightmare, so that he had to force himself to forget them ;
but at night when he lay relaxed in sleep they came unbidden with
such vividness as to make him start up in horror. Thus, burdened
by the sins and sorrows of Africa, he wandered for seven years in
the wilderness, and at last at Ilala, by the swamps of Bangweolo,
worn out, he died.

When his body was brought to England in 1874 Dr. Stewart was
at home on business of Lovedale. He had found to his surprise
that the Foreign Mission Committee of the Free Church were con-
templating a new field of activity which, strangely, was in Somali-
land and not in Central Africa, and he had no mind to revive his
former scheme. But standing beside the open grave of Livingstone
in Westminster Abbey the old inspiration seized him again, and h-
resolved to take advantage of the fresh wave of interest in things
African.

One evening in the country house of his brother-in-law, Mr. John
Stephen, near Glasgow, he discussed the subject with some friends,
eager spirits all, devoted to the Master and His missionary cause.
The talk went on round the fire throughout the night, and it was only
as dawn was breaking that a decision wss reached. A movement
was to be inaugurated with the object of establishing a mission in
memory of the dead explorer, and to be called by his name. Stewart
agreed to moot the scheme in May at the General Assembly of the
Free Church, which he had been invited to address.

On the night when the Foreign Mission report was considered
the hall was, as usual, crowded, but a long speech from Dr. Duff
monopolized the time and wearied the audience, and the house was
emptying when the turn of the missionaries came. Stewart was the
third of these to speak, and it was after ten o'clock when he rose,
and there were few left to listen. But every one was present who
mattered. All kinds of projects, he said, were being proposed to
commemorate the dead hero, but he suggested that the truest
memorial would be the establishment of an Institution in Central
Africa which might grow into a city and become a centre of com-
merce, civilization, and Christianity. " And this," he added,
" I would call Livingstonia."

Among the knot of influential and trusted laymen who heard
the speech was Mr. James Stevenson, a Glasgow merchant. On him
Stewart called next morning and found him sympathetic. There

THE EXPLORERS DREAMS 9

was, however, a difficulty. Stewart was strongly against the
Mission using the Zambezi route on account of the Portuguese
occupying the coast and blocking enterprise. Stevenson insisted
on the advantage of Livingstone's highway, and only felt free to
assist when his point was conceded. He then put down his name
for a £1000 subscription and the movement was under way. But
it took Stewart the best part of a year to bring together a small
committee, chiefly of Glasgow business men, who met in that city
and laid down the lines of procedure. The scheme was publicly
launched in January 1875 at a meeting — presided over by Mr.
James White of Overtoun — also held in Glasgow, which thus from
the first became closely identified with the venture. Although
managed by a separate committee the Mission was under the
auspices of the Free Church. Other Churches had also the matter
before them. The Church of Scotland decided to proceed inde-
pendently, but requested permission to attach a pioneer agent to the
expedition : the United Presbyterian Church, already fully occupied
with mission work, having just extended its agencies in India and
China and established new fields in Spain and Japan, was not pre-
pared at the moment to undertake fresh responsibilities : the Re-
formed Presbyterian Church, however, joined, all the more readily
from the fact that its union with the Free Church was on the point
of being consummated.

No denominational barriers divided the interest taken in the
scheme by the community at large. Here, it was felt, was a
memorial worthy of Dr. Livingstone and worthy of Scotland
Once before Scots had taken part with patriotic pride and high
hopes in a great overseas undertaking. The Darien Expedition
was an attempt to set up a colonial empire which would pour the
wealth of tropical America into Scotland, and the bitter ignominy
and shame of its failure still haunted the national memory. But
Livingstonia would be a more noble undertaking, and be more in
line with the higher genius of the people ; it would be an effort, not
to secure dividends, but to realize the life-aims of Livingstone, to
open up dark Africa, to free a race subject to bondage, and to set
up a spiritual kingdom which would exercise a beneficent influence
throughout the interior of the continent. All Christian Scotland
rallied to the enterprise : subscriptions came in from every class
and quarter, from city merchant prince and Highland crofter,
and the £10,000 required to begin the mission was over-subscribed.

But, as is not unusual when adventures in God's service are
afoot, sceptical voices were heard. There were onlookers who

io LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

derided the scheme and sneered at the enthusiasm of its supporters ;
they regarded the project as impracticable, and spoke of Africa the
mysterious and implacable, and drew sombre pictures of defeat and
disaster, and of rotting bones on the banks of the Zambezi.

How these forebodings were falsified, how a band of mission-
aries entered the Nyasa district, how the wild tribes were subdued
and the power of the slavers broken, how a great tract of tropical
country was added to the Empire, and how with exceeding patience
and courage there has been built up amongst the old savage condi-
tions a Christian civilization — is told in the following pages.

It is the story of Dr. Livingstone's successor, the man who has
realized his dreams.

PART ONE
THE YEARS OF PREPARATION

I. Childhood

In the year 1818 in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, a son was born to
William Laws, a cartwright, and given the name of Robert. His
mother dying while he was an infant, he was brought up by devout
grandparents. As soon as he was old enough he was sent to a
Sunday school two miles off, but the way never seemed long, for
Thomas Henderson, the superintendent, a silversmith, was beloved
by his scholars. With a wide outlook upon life he was keenly in-
terested in missions, and kindled their imaginations with stories of
daring and achievement, and created in them a desire to take part
in so adventurous a service. He himself qualified for the work, and
found a sphere in British Guiana as a lay missionary in connection
with the London Missionary Society, and, being ordained, rendered
long and useful service in the colony.

At the day school Laws came under less inspiring influence and
arrived, before long, at the cross-roads. Young as he was, he
weighed the advantages of good and evil, and decided that a life of
sin was less irksome and fuller of zest and flavour than one governed
by virtue. One misty morning he made a beginning. On the way
to school he stood amongst the heather and whin and, pale with the
courage of his effort, swore the most terrible oaths he had ever heard.
They sounded strange in his ears, and he looked fearfully around.
Then distinctly he heard a voice say, " If you take that course you
will go to hell, and if you go to hell across your mother's prayers it
will be a sad hell to you." No one had yet told him that his mother
was a woman of prayer, but from that moment he knew, and he
felt he was hedged round by invisible barriers, and that the broad
road for him was closed.

Though he obtained little schooling he never lost his craving for
knowledge. When working as an apprentice to his father from
6 a.m. to 8 p.m. he would race home for supper, seize some hot
potatoes, and make his way to a night school, eating as he went.
For long he nursed the hope of becoming a missionary, but graduallv

12 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

reached the conviction that it was not to be. He was not sufficiently
educated, and there was no hope of making good his deficiencies.
But he vowed that if ever he had a son he would dedicate him to
service in the foreign field.

After completing his term of apprenticeship he set up in business
on his own account at Mannofield on the western outskirts of Aber-
deen. With simple faith he prayed that he might obtain a Christian
helpmate out of a Christian home, however humble. His desire was
granted. Christian Cruickshank, whom he married, was a daughter
of Alexander Cruickshank, a crofter, or small farmer, at Kidshill,
Buchan, a staunch Seceder and an elder in Stewartfield United
Presbyterian Church. The girl had a calm and sunny tempera-
ment, sound judgment, and gentle ways. A year after the union
Mr. Laws became an elder in St. Nicholas Lane United Presbyterian
Church, which was noted for its missionary spirit : from it Dr.
Alexander Robb had gone to Calabar as a missionary. Four years
later, on 28th May 1851, a son was born and named Robert.

It was a month when the mind of the world was in a state of
unusual elation. The first International Exhibition had just been
opened within its palace of glass in London, and the belief was wide-
spread that the event presaged the reign of peace and goodwill
among the nations. Yet strife began shortly after, and there
has been no rest from warfare since. The career of the child, born
when the feeling was at its height, was to supply one more illustra-
tion that it is not by means of exhibitions human nature is changed,
or social and racial conditions ameliorated, but rather by the moral
influence and energy of individuals.

Young Robert showed in his earliest years that he had a will, and
a strong one. His father once thought it necessary to chastise him
for disobedience, but both suffered so much in the process that
physical punishment was never resorted to again. It was in truth
not required, for the child was loving and clinging by nature and
could not bear to be at variance with his parents.

Mrs. Laws was consumptive, and when only twenty-four she
sickened, and one Sunday evening lay dying. Asked if she had any
wish regarding her boy, who was then but two years old, she
whispered, " No, I leave him to you : he will be a companion to
you." As she lay in her coffin, Mr. Laws took the child and raised
him up that he might gaze upon her. The sight of the white, still
face haunted his memory ever after ; it was his earliest recollection
of life.

He found a second home with his grandparents at Kidshill.

CHILDHOOD 13

Here, by the ingle-nook, he obtained his first lessons in reading, the
text-books being the Shorter Catechism and the metrical Psalms.
One picture comes clear-cut out of the haze of those days — of his
grandmother standing over the fire and stirring with one hand the
strawberry jam, which simmered in the pot slung from the iron
swivel, and with the other urging him on with his task of learning
the 84th Psalm :

"How lovely is thy dwelling-place,
O Lord of hosts, to me ! "

while all the time his thoughts and eyes were occupied longingly
with the sweet-smelling preserve. Another child, Alexander
Cruickshank, his cousin, was his constant companion in these days,
and was often rocked in the same cradle, which the rightful owner
sometimes resented, and once endeavoured to put an end to with a
hot poker.

No longer caring for the scene associated with the death of his
wife, Mr.Laws give up his business and moved farther into Aberdeen,
where he specialized in cabinetmaking. As years passed it became
evident that it was his duty to seek another helpmate to assist in
caring for the boy. Again he prayed for a Christian, and again he
was favoured. In 1856 he married Isabella Cormack of Aberdeen,
and young Robert was brought back from Kidshill to their home in
Summer Street. He was sent first to a dame's school taught by a
Miss Robertson, and then to the Free East Church School, in which
Mr. Stevenson was" master. Mr. Stevenson was fastidious in his
personal appearance, always wearing a frock coat and a tall silk
hat. A capable teacher, he was in some things ahead of his time,
giving his scholars lessons in physiology and physiography, as well
as grounding them well in the Bible. Not a few distinguished men
passed through his hands. Laws, who was then small and fragile,
showed no promise as a scholar : his contemporaries remember him
as a quiet, shy, simple boy, whose reserve it was not easy to pierce.
His subsequent career came as a surprise to them, and was a source
of much gratification to Mr. Stevenson, wTho never tired of holding
him up as an example. He used to tell his classes a story to illus-
trate the conscientiousness of his old pupil. Laws, he said, was
late in rising one morning and, being concerned to reach the school
in time, hurried through his duties and set off. While still half-
way he suddenly remembered that he had omitted to say his prayers,
and there and then in the street he knelt down and said them.

Out of school the boy worked in the home, helping his father

i4 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and stepmother and running messages for the neighbours, the
pennies he received for this service paying his school fees. He also
attended the Sunday school in St. Nicholas Lane, his class being
taught by Miss Melville, one of the old type of Scotswoman, shrewd,
racy in speech, kind-hearted, and a humble Christian. More dis-
cerning than others she, from the first, singled out " her dwining
laddie," as she called him, as a boy of parts. The boys sat on one
side, the girls on the other : amongst the former was a James
Shepherd, some years older than Laws, who became his principal,
almost his only, companion : amongst the latter was a Margaret
Gray, by whom he was specially attracted.

II. The Poor Apprentice

Living in an atmosphere charged with missionary enthusiasm
there was never a time when young Laws was not interested in the
work of the Church abroad. With wise reticence his father did
not make known his wish that he should be a missionary, but by
prayer and in quiet and indirect ways sought to lead his thoughts
towards that goal. He told him stories of the pioneers, of Williams
and Moffat and Livingstone, of the romance of Calabar, and all the
thrilling incidents connected with the unveiling of Africa the
mysterious. The words " Livingstone's Makololo " were like
music to the boy's ears, and his nightly prayer was, " O God, send
me to the Makololo." The Children's Missionary Magazine was
not sufficient to satisfy his thirst for information : on the days when
the Monthly Record was put into the pews he hurried through with
his Sunday-school lessons in order to read it. Later his father put
the lives of the great missionaries into his hands, and he knew them
almost by heart before he was twelve.

The same influence was at work at Kidshill, where he often spent
his holidays with his cousin Alec. Sometimes they would talk of
what they would be, and the crofter, listening, would hear fragments
of their conversation and have a vision of two grandsons on the
foreign field. One day, while sitting on a wall, snuff-mull in hand,
watching a hive of bees, he said suddenly to the boy beside him,
" Well, Bobby, what are you going to be ? " Robert, taken aback,
instantly closed his heart, as a sensitive boy would naturally do,
and said carelessly, " Oh, I suppose I'll have to go into the cabinet-
making or work of that kind." The old man smiled and did not
press him.

He was more open with his Sunday-school teacher. Miss

THE POOR APPRENTICE 15

Melville put the same question to him and was given the same off-
hand answer.

" But," she insisted, " what would you like to be ? "

He hesitated, and then with a spurt of courage replied, " A
foreign missionary."

" Well," she said gently, " if God wants you to be one of his
missionaries He will open the way."

Before he was in his teens he became a member of the Young
Men's Mutual Improvement Association, a position which reacted
curiously on his character. From being a casual, nondescript,
shy kind of boy, he became more of a personality to himself, less
self-conscious, and more confident. His leaning towards missions
was so well known that he was asked to give a paper on Dr. Living-
stone and his travels, which he did. The matter came to the ears
of Mr. Stevenson, who sought and read the production. " You've
tackled a big subject," was his dry remark to the little fellow of
twelve.

Not succeeding in his business, Mr. Laws entered the service of
Messrs. A. & W. Ogilvie as foreman in the cabinetmaking depart-
ment, and life for the family became more of a strain and struggle
than it had been. The boy, though not clever, was observant and
thoughtful, and he came to the conclusion that it was his duty to
leave school and assist his parents. He had resolved to be a mis-
sionary, but he saw no present prospect of accomplishing his pur-
pose, and made no mention of the matter to his father, who also kept
silence and accepted his service. The bitterness of the decision for
Robert soon passed, and he did not give up hope. Deep in his heart
he determined that he would yet win through. " I will set twenty
years before me," he said, " and should God spare me, I hope by
that time I will be ready for work abroad."

He entered the workshop the youngest of six apprentices with
the most menial tasks to perform, such as kindling the fires, heating
the glue, and running errands. For this he received 2s. 6d. per
week. He took the first half-crown home and, like David Living-
stone, laid it in his stepmother's lap. His passive face told nothing
of the excitement within, for he was thinking of his hero buying a
Latin Grammar with part of his wage, and was longing to purchase
a Greek one, but he could not bring himself to say anything. The
same longing made him haunt a second-hand bookshop until the
kindly old bookseller discovered his desire, and allowed him to see a
grammar, from which he copied the characters of the alphabet and
learnt them.

16 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

These were years of toil and self-denial. He was up at 5 a.m.
and began work at six, continuing until six at night with hour
intervals for breakfast and dinner. On Saturdays he was off at two
but remained until seven on Monday evenings. Each night after
supper, and after assisting his stepmother, he proceeded to classes
in the Mechanics' Hall, and then studied until the " grandfather's
clock " in the kitchen struck eleven. It was a genuine grandfather's
clock, for Alexander Cruickshank had died, and his clock had been
brought to the house. It was so tall that a hole had to be dug in the
floor in order that it might stand upright. Robert seldom heard
the signal without recalling his last visit to the old man. As he
stood by the bedside he was moved by some impulse to tell him of
his desire to be a missionary. " So you will, so you will," was the
fervent response. " Mind your God and mind your Bible, and in
due course the Lord will give you your reward."

In the workshop he went the round of the departments. " I
endeavoured," he has said, " to gain as much practical knowledge
as I possibly could of the different kinds of manual labour which I
found had been so useful to such men as Williams, Moffat, and
Livingstone." He was particularly eager to obtain some idea of
housebuilding. While he learnt much of craftsmanship he also
gained an insight into human nature. The men — who only re-
ceived a wage of 12s. 6d. per week — were a mixed company, some
good, some bad, but there were several notable characters amongst
them. One possessed a remarkable memory : he knew the entire
Bible by heart, having learnt it a chapter at a time when a boy.
If he were asked, " John, where is this passage ? " he would at
once name the book, chapter, and verse. If a book and the number
of a chapter and verse were given, and he was challenged to repeat
the words, he would promptly comply. The only portions that
puzzled him were some of the chapters of names in Chronicles.
His fellow-workers used to club together and purchase a ticket for a
lecture and send John to hear it, and next day they had it repeated
almost word for word.

From the Sunday school Robert passed, along with his friends
James Shepherd and Margaret Gray, into the Bible class, and in the
ordinary course all these became workers in the mission in the Ship-
row, where a variety of Sunday and week-night meetings were
carried on in the interests of working lads and girls. One of the
first things Robert did in his own class was to introduce a regular
missionary lesson.

17

III. The Influence of a Smile

In this difficult period the chief influences moulding his character
were those operating in his own home. His father was an excep-
tional man, efficient in his handiwork, scrupulously honest in his
business dealings, large-hearted, wide in sympathies, and tolerant
almost to a fault, and, more than all, a childlike disciple of the
Master he loved. The testimony to his goodness is universal.
" One of the saintliest men I have known," a distinguished member
of the congregation has said. " Ay," says the sexton at Old
Machar Cathedral, " he was terrible good : he just went toddling
about doing good to everybody ; as nice a man as ever walked in
man's shoes."

His stepmother was different. She was of a type not uncommon
then in Scotland, the product of a spiritual temperature rendered
frigid by Calvinism. Life to her was a very serious business, and
governed by stern principles to which allegiance must be given at all
costs. Death and the future shadowed all natural pleasure. God
was an implacable judge who exacted with unflinching severity the
utmost penalty of the law which He had established. Her creed,
reacting on her character, made her seem cold, severe, unsym-
pathetic. In reality she had a heart of gold. Love burned within
her, but it was damped down, and seldom glowed or gleamed on the
surface. She had not the mother's knowledge of a boy's mind
which comes from watching its development from birth, and she
did not understand, her stepson. Determined to do her duty
faithfully by him, she sought to drive, rather than to lead, him into
ways of righteousness, striving hard to restrain and eradicate such
evil tendencies as he exhibited. The same ignorance characterized
him : if he was an unchartered region to her, she was an unexplored
continent to him. He did not fathom her motives, and dumbly
resented her methods. Conscious that she watched over his health
and saw to his comfort, he yet missed something he could not tell
what. It was the tender and understanding touch of a mother.

Without brother or sister, and with few companions, he was for a
time forced in upon himself : became silent, introspective, moody ;
learnt to control and repress his emotions, and lost the grace of ready
and careless speech. In the unhappy hours that come to most
sensitive youths he felt lonely, desolate, awkward, in everybody's
way ; and he would go to sleep at night with the thought that it
would not matter if he never woke again, but lay beside his mother
under the trees in Old Machar Kirkyard. . . .

1 8 LAWS OF LIVINGSTOxXIA

How from this very real but boyish and uncomprehending
attitude he passed on to a more intelligent apprehension and ap-
preciation of his stepmother's sterling nature will be seen as the
story unfolds. . . .

By and by the father, with his gentle influence, came into the
heart of the boy and rescued him from himself. He gave him a new
idea of God, portraying Him as a loving father, kind, compassionate,
understanding, and forgiving — One who had thoughts of good and
not of evil towards men. Long afterwards he said, " I learnt a lot
about the love of God from my father, and it was of tremendous
value and help to me." And again and again he would exclaim,
" How thankful I ought to be for such a father, even if for nothing
more than his warm, loving smile." The years brought the two
closer to each other in affectionate companionship. So pleasant
grew the relationship that the father dwelt ever less on his vow, and
was not sorry that the straitened circumstances of the family pre-
vented the idea of a missionary future being realized. He recalled
the dying thought of his first wife, whilst the stepmother's ambi-
tion was also to see the two walk together through life.

But the boy had not relinquished his dream : it was with him
day and night. In November 1866 a deputation from the London
Missionary Society, including Mr. Fairbrother, one of the secre-
taries, came to Aberdeen and held a meeting in the Music Hall.
After leaving the mission in the Shiprow, Robert went into the Hall
and listened to the speeches. His interest grew, and he felt a strong
desire to speak to the deputies, but he did not know how to approach
them. As the audience was dispersing he stood irresolute at the
door, and when the platform party appeared, regarded them wist-
fully. The look on his face attracted Mr. Arthur, a local con-
gregational minister, who turned to him with a kind smile and
said :

" Well, my boy, would yon like to be a missionary ? "

The smile more than the words won him — he used afterwards to
say that it was that smile that made him a missionary.

" Yes," he replied bashfully.

" Would you like to speak to Mr. Fairbrother ? "

"Yes."

" Come, then."

Mr. Fairbrother questioned him regarding his occupation,
parents, health, and Church connection, and was evidently impressed
by his intelligence and eagerness.

" I will see," he said, " what can be done."

BENCH CULTURE 19

The matter having gone so far, Robert thought it right to inform
his father. Next day, as they were walking to the shop after dinner,
he revealed his longing and resolve, and related the incident of the
previous night. His father seemed pleased, but in reality felt sick
at heart, and for some time a struggle went on between inclination
and duty. While meditating on the subject one day he heard an
inward voice say :

" Will you give up your son to Me to be a missionary as you
promised, to be a blessing to yoursell and to the world, or will you
keep him to be a curse to yoursell and a' ither body ? "

The last words struck home with terrible power to his Scottish
mind, and instantly he responded, " Lord, I give him to Thee."
The surrender was complete, and was followed by a determination
to do all in his power to help the lad, though how the money to
send him to the University was to be provided was more than he
could tell.

Next day Miss Melville sent him a note asking him to call.

" Can you spare Robert part of the day from work ? " she asked.
" I have a little fund for Christ, and I wish to lay it out in paying a
private tutor for him."

Mr. Laws bowed his head ; his heart was too full of wonder and
praise to speak.

IV. Bench Culture

The boy possessed no books, but he borrowed a Latin Dictionary
and reading book, and, aided by a student, began his studies.
Unfortunately the firm in which father and son were employed
failed, and both were for a time out of employment. Mr. Laws
started in business for himself, and there ensued a time of severe
trial and privation, endured before the world with a quiet and re-
ticent dignity. The misfortune, however, proved a blessing in
disguise, for Robert was now freer to carry out his purpose. Big
as he was — he had developed in bone and muscle after beginning
work — he returned to school, but was found so backward that
Mr. Stevenson recommended private tutoring ; and with various
teachers he continued Latin and began Greek. By two or three
o'clock in the morning he was up sitting at the table in the kitchen,
and there late at night he would be found poring over his books.
In the workshop he stuck the grammars up on a convenient ledge,
and learnt rules and phrases while he wrought, but the majority
were acquired in his walks to and from the shop. In addition
to his ordinary work he took charge of his father's business books.

20 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

They were the bane of his life, and exercised his patience to breaking
point, but the training the task gave him in the exact keeping of
accounts was of the utmost value to him in after-life. He was
always ready to assist his father at any time : often both would
be working all night in an emergency, such as the making of a coffin.
" And all this," says one of his companions, " he did ungrudgingly,
for he was an affectionate and dutiful son."

Miss Melville did her part to keep his interest alive in missions.
When Mr. Goldie, the well-known Jamaica and Calabar missionary,
was visiting in the north she invited Robert to meet him, and the
two had a long talk. "There is," said the missionary, "a young
medical man who wishes to go out to Calabar, but the Committee
have declined him on account of his health." Goldie evinced such
disappointment that the lad said to himself, " Would God that I
might fill the blank ! " But that was passing emotion, for his
settled purpose was to follow in the footsteps of Dr. Livingstone.

He had not the wherewithal to enter the University, and was
relying on a scholarship. He toiled hard for this, going to a tutor
at five o'clock every morning before proceeding to the shop, but
the lack of time proved fatal ; though he did his best he failed.
He literally staggered under the blow : could not do any work, and
wandered about in agony of spirit until he realized the faithlessness
of such an attitude. " God has provided for me hitherto," he said,
" and I will trust in Him." He went and told Miss Melville, who
comforted him, and, when he was leaving, slipped £2 into his hand.
His grandmother, then nearing her end, sent him £1, and £5 was
obtained by the sale of his mother's chest of drawers. With these
sums he paid his first year's fees.

Other moneys came and helped him along. Through the good
offices of Miss Melville a grant of £10 came from the Mission Board
of the United Presbyterian Church. Robert accepted this, but
inwardly resolved to treat it as a loan and repay it when he could,
which in due time he did. From Rotterdam came another gift.
A cousin of his mother was the wife of the minister of the Scots
Church there, and hearing of his ambition to be a missionary she
sent him £8 to assist him in his studies. It had belonged to her
little boy, and at his death was earmarked for the mission cause.
She asked that one of Robert's first converts should be named
James Brown after her boy. Then he was nominated for the Braco
Bursary of the value of £17 for three years. " I feel very grateful
for all this kindness," he said, " but if I want success and honours
it is only to lay them at the feet of Christ."

STUDENT AND ARTISAN 21

" If I am going to the foreign field," he reasoned, " and if I am
to be of the greatest use I must be as fully qualified as I can in
every way." Reading of the superior influence exercised by medical
missionaries he resolved to strain every nerve to become a doctor.
He, therefore, decided to take the three courses of Arts, Medicine,
and Theology, and to take them not in succession, but more or less
concurrently, calculating that he might finish the three in seven
years. It was a formidable task for a lad who had to maintain
himself, but relying on a Power higher than his own he braced him-
self, quietly and resolutely, for the struggle. " I cannot " was a
phrase he abhorred ; he had no use for it ; his motto then and
always was 7reipao-a>, " I shall try."

It was a proud moment when in 1868 he left home for the
University. As he walked along the streets in his scarlet gown and
his books under his arm a woman standing at her door caught sight
-of his erect form. She called on a young lodger in one of her rooms
to come out. " D'ye see that lad ? " she said impressively. " That's
Bobbie Laws, and he's gaun awa' to College to be a missionary."
Her lodger did not think it was anything of a wonder, for he was
going to the University himself some day, and he too was resolved
to be a missionary. He was James Webster, long afterwards
famous as " Webster of Manchuria," and latterly one of the Foreign
Mission Secretaries of the United Free Church. It was notable
that he also was a member of Miss Melville's class. Within a short
time there passed through this remarkable lady's hands five pioneer
missionaries — Dr. Shepherd of Rajputana, Dr. and Mrs. Laws of
Livingstonia, Dr. Webster of Manchuria, and the Rev. Alex.
Cruickshank of Calabar.

V. Student and Artisan

The lad had reached his first goal, that northern institute of learn-
ing which has so long ministered to the ambitions of such spirits
as his. There has always been something tonic in the austere
environment of the white granite city which braces and stimulates
both body and mind : its students, in the main, work hard and
cherish noble ideals ; and are turned out keen, capable, and master-
ful, many to go far and reach positions of influence and power.
Those among whom Laws found himself were well up to the average,
both in character and attainments. One of the most abstemious
of the number, he neither smoked nor indulged in intoxicating
liquor, though drinking was not regarded with disfavour then.

22 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Most of the students, however, lived temperately, and studied with
an ardour and thoroughness which brought its reward. " For
sheer, downright hard work," says Laws, " they could not be
beaten." Two of the number were Peter Thomson, the brilliant
" Scotch student," and Sir William Watson Cheyne.1

Like many of the others, Laws attended the extra-mural classes
in mathematics and natural philosophy held by Mr., afterwards
Dr., David Rennet, one of the intellectual notabilities of Aberdeen,
beloved by his industrious pupils and a terror to the humbugs and
slackers, whose broad Scots tongue and pungent wit never interfered
with the skill of his training. He had probably more senior
wranglers to his credit than any teacher outside of Cambridge.
Laws always warmed at the thought of " Davie."

From the first the young student was handicapped by lack of
time for study. For he continued his tasks in the shop, where
his conscientiousness would not allow him to scamp any duty or
do any but honest and efficient work. The place was as much his
study as his home. He drew the problems of Euclid on the walls,
and worked them out whilst busy with his tools.

Another kind of problem came into his head one day. Was he
saved or not ? Puzzled, he stood thoughtfully at the bench and
considered the matter. His eye caught a diagram on the wall :
it was an inspiration to his practical mind. " I will reason it out,"
he said, with the ghost of a smile at his own whimsicality. " This
is the proposition — Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt
be saved. All those, therefore, who believe are saved. I must
either believe or not believe. Do I believe ? Yes, I do. Therefore
I am saved." From that time he never had a doubt as to his
position. But this was only an incident on the surface of his
spiritual life : he had always walked with God and had never been
conscious of any definite decision or surrender. As one of his
companions, referring to this point, says: "The religious life of us
both awoke like the advance of the light from the grey dawn."

Robert, however, was under no delusion about himself : he

1 At the fiftieth anniversary class dinner (191 8), when eighteen old students
were present, Mr. P. J. Anderson, M.A., LL.B., recalled some of those who
had achieved distinction — professors, members of Parliament, knights,
missionaries, merchant princes, at least one judge, one Cambridge don,
one Indian pro-consul — and added, " Is there one whose name will live ?
If it were of any use to venture a prophecy, whose fulfilment we cannot see,
I should be inclined to believe that in years to come, when Central Africa
has grown as civilized as Scotland is to-day, the name of its Columba may be
recalled with veneration, though probably not canonized as Saint Robert."

STUDENT AND ARTISAN 23

was too conscious of his weakness and shortcomings to be self-
righteous, and was continually sitting in ashes, humbled and
ashamed. " I am not what you picture me to be," he wrote to one
in moral trouble whom he was trying to strengthen. "I am far
from what a Christian ought to be, but by the grace of God I desire
to be more and more like what Christ Himself was and is."

At this time, in addition to his ordinary studies, he taught him-
self shorthand, which he continued to use throughout life. He also
undertook private tutoring to add to his slender income. One of
his pupils was a guard in the railway who came to him at six in the
morning and again at six in the evening. Another, who became
a successful merchant, says : "Laws tutored me when T was pre-
paring for College. I well remember my surprise when one day
passing a shop an hour after our lesson, I looked in and saw our
teacher sitting at a carpenter's bench working with his hands.
It was a lesson on the dignity of labour that I never forgot." An-
other citizen had a similar surprise. A young joiner came to his
house to execute some repairs, and he directed him what to do ;
shortly afterwards he met the artisan in the street in scarlet gown,
trencher, and cap, and could scarce believe his eyes. Again, when
in the house of his minister, working at some job, the servant lass
said to him :

" Do you like your master ? "

" Yes," he replied, " pretty well."

" Do you get on with him all right ? "

" Oh yes."

" Now," she said to another workman who was grumbling,
" there's a lad who likes his master."

" Him ! Well, he should ; his maister's his faither ! "

The same girl was astonished soon after to see Robert sitting
at dinner at her master's table along with other students.

In the summer of 1871 he added to his Arts classes those of
botany and anatomy in the medical curriculum. This brought him
more into touch with his friend Shepherd, now an advanced medical
student, with the Indian mission field as his objective, and he
became a frequent visitor to the basement of 6 Bon Accord Crescent,
where Shepherd had his " den." Many a long night the two spent
together dissecting frogs and mice. Shepherd was busy with the
nervous system, and in his zeal to help him Laws would occasionally
stalk a stray cat, capture it, hide it under his coat, and bring it
triumphantly into the den for purposes of experiment.

It was in botany that he obtained his first prize. In high spirits

24 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

he proceeded to the shop with the result of the examination. His
father saw him come in with a dismal and woebegone face.

" What do you think of my being stuck, father ? " he said.

Mr. Laws showed his consternation, and then remarked sym-
pathetically, " Never mind, Robert. It's the lack of time that bowls
you over. I am sorry you have to be kept so much in the shop."

" Well, then," was the triumphant rejoinder, " I have passed,
and I have got a botany prize ! "

In the winter he attended chemistry, and as he was taking
zoology and geology in Arts, this meant also his first year in medicine.
In summer his work was interrupted. He had been employed
flitting, or removing, tenants who were changing their houses.
His stepmother also was ill, and he was attending her with affec-
tionate solicitude. The only time for study was at night, and he sat
into the early hours. One day Shepherd met him, and thought
him looking worn out. Smallpox was epidemic at the time. " You
had better be vaccinated," his friend urged, and supplied him with
lymph. Robert received it dubiously. " Don't you think," he
said, " that vaccination and medical exams, will be too much to
endure at one time ? I'll put off the vaccination until the exams,
are over." He began to feel unaccountably lazy, drooped with
physical lassitude, and then could scarcely walk. But with his
usual tenacity he struggled on until he finally collapsed. The
doctor who was called in pronounced him to be suffering from small-
pox, and Shepherd conveyed him to Mounthooly Hospital, where
he lay for many weeks in the anteroom of death, suffering intensely,
his body being covered with boils, so that he had to be laid between
sheets soaked in oil. " I don't relish the company of these boils
at all," he wrote to his parents ; " they have tried my pluck more
than anything ; please ask that patience may be granted me to
keep from complaining."

It was a dark time for the family, for following upon his step-
mother's illness his father was attacked by pleurisy, and life seemed
crushing with its aimless reverses. But faith remained undimmed,
and was justified by events. These trials knit the three more
closely together : the boils left Robert with a new and stronger con-
stitution, and the smallpox fitted him for a position in which he was
to receive an important part of his training. The stepmother
saw in what she considered the dispensation of Providence a call
to service ; she reminded Robert that he could do work for Christ
even in hospital. He thanked her gently, and at the first oppor-
tunity asked the seven other patients in the ward if they were agree-

PLAIN LIVING: HIGH THINKING 25

able that he should read aloud a chapter of the Bible. Somewhat
to his surprise the suggestion was eagerly welcomed. "So," he
wrote, "if the ministers don't come here, God is not kept away,
and that is a great comfort." Through the kindly help of the
chemistry professor he was able to make up what he had lost in his
studies.

VI. Plain Living : High Thinking

After graduating in Arts in 1872 he proceeded in the autumn to
Edinburgh to attend the theological classes of the United Presby-
terian Church at 5 Queen Street, where Cairns and Eadie were his
teachers. His initial experience in Eadie's classroom was dis-
appointing, the lecture being so much gibberish to his north-
country ears. " I might as well have been at Jericho," he said,
" for all I heard." But in time he became accustomed to the Pro-
fessor's style. The two men he summed up in a sentence, " Cairns
we loved : Eadie was different but splendid." Cairns with his big
heart was always generous to the students. Once when Laws
had been unusually busy he remained up all night endeavouring to
commit an exegesis to memory, but with poor success. When he
entered the rostrum, Cairns, who seemed to suspect his plight,
covered his face with his hand as if to give him the opportunity of
consulting his MS. Laws did take a look when he was not sure
what was coming next. At the same moment, happening to glance
at the Professor, he saw him peeping at him between his fingers.
Both smiled broadly. Said the kindly professor afterwards, " I
have scarcely listened to an exercise which has given me more
satisfaction." The student was of opinion that the judgment
would have been none the worse for a savouring of salt.

He lodged in a modest room at No. 2 Tarvit Street with a Mrs.
Smith, who proved to be a landlady both honest and economical.
Some of his weekly bills are extant and show how meagrely he
fared. For lodgings he paid 3s. 6d., and his food — excluding tea
and sugar, which he had brought with him — seldom cost more.
Seven shillings per week meant plain living, but apparently he
throve on it.

One of the first churches he entered was Dean Ramsay's. He
had never before been in an Episcopal church, and he was strangely
moved by the experience : the music with its plaintive appeal
thrilled him inexpressibly and lifted him into heights of spiritual
emotion. Then he made his way to the Grassmarket to find some
mission work to do, and was appalled by the scenes of drunkenness

26 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and violence. " It was a splendid place and audience for open-air
preaching, but I was too much of a coward to make the attempt."
There was, however, not a trace of cowardice in his nature — he
often did things requiring much more moral courage : it was rather
an overpowering consciousness of his awkwardness and his power-
lessness to make the right appeal which embarrassed him. He felt
that he had not the qualities of a ready and attractive speaker, and
was inclined to blame, more than ever, his early training, which had
driven him so much into himself. Nothing made him so envious
as the eloquence of his fellow-students. " I long," he said, " to
have such power of utterance as could sway the minds of
assemblies." What small experience he had obtained convinced
him of the force of words, not read, but spoken direct to the hearers.
The sentences might be broken and rough, and even ungrammatical,
yet the gain in interest and effect seemed to be worth the loss, and
thenceforward he decided only to use catch notes in his addresses.
He was, however, clear-sighted enough to realize that eloquence
was not the highest gift and perhaps not the best for him to
possess. For long he was torn between the natural desire to do
well in this direction, fear that it might make him proud, and
shame that he could do so little for his Master who had done so
much for him, until he came to the conclusion that a quiet life of
deeds might be as important and acceptable a service, and the one
for which he was best fitted.

It was well that he fortified himself thus, to judge from an
incident which occurred about this time. He was asked to preach
in an Edinburgh church, but the thought of standing in the place
of a distinguished minister who used to be in the Free East Church,
Aberdeen, and gave him sweets in Stevenson's school, sent cold
shivers through him, and to avoid the possibility of such a thing he
grasped at an offer to " supply " in Lanark Free Church. Though
suffering from a headache, he found pleasure in preaching to a large
congregation. When he reached the vestry after the service, James
Buckley, the beadle, a local character noted for his shrewd and
caustic humour, was waiting for him.

" What's your name ? " he said.

" Laws — Robert Laws."

" You'll be frae Edinbry ? "

" Yes, I'm from Edinburgh."

" Oh ay, you're awfu' dreich [dry, uninteresting] and you've
kept us half an 'oor ower lang. I dinna think there'll be mony folk
back in the afternune."

THE PRIEST OF DEATH 27

The young preacher was taken aback, but answered nothing.
"The eager faces did not say ower lang," he reflected, "and my
Master did not say ower lang," and he repeated the offence in the
afternoon. James this time never uttered a word : the pre-
sumptuous youth was past speaking to.

He did not escape the moulting stage of theological student
life. Awakening to the fact that the system of doctrine which he
had learnt in the Sunday school and Bible class no longer entirely
coincided with what he thought, his beliefs were considerably
shaken, and for a time were somewhat chaotic. With a con-
scientious thoroughness characteristic of all he did he revised the
basis of his faith, and while throwing overboard some minor tenets
held fast with a stronger grip than ever to the truths that centred
in God the Father and Jesus as Saviour.

The winter of 1873 was spent in Aberdeen at medical classes,
and the following summer in the Hospital under Dr. Fiddes, whom
he also assisted in his private practice. " He was a diligent and
intelligent student," says Dr. Fiddes, " sparing no pains to make
himself acquainted with the cases, and was a great favourite with
the patients, for he was ever kind, gentle, and attentive to them :
there were few young men like him."

At this time he was tutoring from 6.30 to 7.30 a.m., and some-
times until after 8 : his hospital work occupied three hours
daily ; he had classes in Marischal College from 2 to 5 p.m. ; in the
evening he put in another two hours' teaching, attended to his
father's books, and drew out estimates and plans for furniture ; and
only then was free for class preparation. He often worked until
2 or 3 a.m., and was at his desk again by 5 o'clock.

This excessive application was known to his friends, who fre-
quently remonstrated with him. Miss Melville begged him to
exercise restraint and not overwork — "That," she said, "is zeal
without knowledge : we have to guard against thinking that God
cannot do certain work without us." Dr. Robb also felt con-
strained to counsel him. " Do mind the body. Get it braced and
strengthened pari passu with the mind and heart and spirit. A
good constitution and good health are the best elements in the
matter of acclimatization."

VII. The Priest of Death

Laws could not but smile grimly at the advice of his friends. He
thought of the brave struggle at home, his meagre weekly bill for

28 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

lodging and food, and his vanishing capital. Occasional preaching
appointments — a guinea a Sunday and no allowance for travelling
expenses — yielded little. Discussing ways and means with a
fellow-student from Aberdeen named Robertson,1 the latter said,
" Why not join the Glasgow City Mission as I have done ? I have
a fixed salary, and can also earn something as a pulpit supply."
Laws was taken with the idea. The Glasgow City Mission was
a notable institution which carried the message and spirit of Christ
into social deeps where vice reigned naked and unabashed. There
were few better training grounds for foreign missionaries than the
sphere in which its service was carried on. John G. Paton of the
New Hebrides was one of its agents ; Chalmers of New Guinea
was another : both came into contact with scenes almost un-
believable in their degradation and wickedness, but both owed
much in after-life to the knowledge and experience they gained in
the work.

On the mid-session holiday the two students took train to
Glasgow and called at the office and saw the superintendent, the
Rev. John Renfrew.

" I see you have had smallpox," he said, eyeing Laws narrowly.

" Yes."

" Well, none of the ordinary posts are vacant, but we are
beginning a mission in the Smallpox and Fever Hospitals and
want a missionary for that. The post has been offered to all our
other men — over forty in number — but we cannot get any to
accept it."

" I will accept it," said Laws, without hesitation. " I have no
fear of infection, and I am also a medical student."

" That is all to the good. Here is a form to fill up, and I will
speak to the Directors."

Laws was interested to learn of the origin of this development
of the City Mission. Miss Margaret Telford, a little, energetic
lady, plump of body and rosy of cheek, was asked by a friend
to make inquiries regarding a servant who had been taken to
the Fever Hospital. While being conducted over the building a
Roman Catholic priest appeared.

" What is that man doing here ? " she asked.

" He is the only Christian visitor who ever comes," was the
reply.

1 The Rev. A. A. Robertson, Ardersier, father of the Rev. J. A. Robertson,
M.A., D.D., Professor of New Testament Language and Literature in the
United Free Church College, Aberdeen.

THE PRIEST OF DEATH 29

Miss Telford visited the servant regularly, and also spoke to the
other patients, and gradually there was a general request for her
kindly ministrations.

She had herself contracted more than one serious lever, and had
but recently recovered from an attack of typhus. Talking to her
brother-in-law, who was a doctor, she remarked :

" Why, Doctor, do you suppose these disciplines have been
sent to me ? "

" Well, Maggie," he replied, " I don't know much about the ways
of Providence, but as a medical man I think you are now immune
from the major fevers. Is there no guidance in that fact ? "

She thought there was, and continued her voluntary work at the
hospital, where she became known as the " missionary lady," and
was welcomed with eagerness by the inmates. She became more
and more impressed with their dire need of spiritual help and
comfort. One day she went into a ward to see a girl of fourteen
who was dying of typhus, and found the priest standing by her.
He taunted Miss Telford with the fact that no Protestant minister
had the courage to enter the hospital. She pointed to the dying
girl. " Perhaps, sir," she said, " you will pray for her." Taken
aback, he mumbled something about not interfering with those
who did not belong to him, and left the ward. She went to the
Directors of the City Mission and urged them to appoint a special
missionary to the hospitals.

" We are quite willing to do something," they said, " but we
have no money.".

" I will raise the money," she replied, and did so.

Laws was the only applicant for the post. Before being
engaged he was subjected to a severe test. The Superintendent
accompanied him on a round of visitation to houses in the slums,
frightful dens of viciousness and dirt, and watched how he
approached and addressed the people. Laws felt miserably out
of his element : it seemed hke impertinence to knock at doors
and speak to men and women about their spiritual welfare. When
the Superintendent took his place his feelings changed : he could
not admire sufficiently the naturalness, the skill, the kindliness of
his address. But when a Roman Catholic virago attacked them
as heretics, flourished a long knife in their faces, and threatened
to murder them, the Superintendent suggested that perhaps they
had done enough, and Laws fervently acquiesced. He was ex-
hausted with the ordeal, and felt an unhappy sense of ill-fittedness
for the work.

30 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Nevertheless he was appointed, his salary being £80 per annum ;
on arrangement being made by which he should spend four hours
daily and the week-ends in the work, and have the rest of his
time for his studies. As his chief residence was now to be
Glasgow he took permanent lodgings there in a third-storey
room. It was the first time he had definitely left home, and
the parting with his father and stepmother was trying. As he
stood girt for his journey south his father with broken voice
prayed that the blessing of God might rest upon him, and that he
might be guided and helped and made an instrument of blessing
to others.

When, in October, he took up duty in the hospital, Miss Telford
met him in one of the passages. The tall, ungainly figure towered
above her, and as she looked up into his grave, smallpox-marked
face her heart sank ; he seemed so unlikely a person for the work.
But, following him into the wards, she watched his first overtures
to the patients and was satisfied. She did not know that what
made the ordeal less difficult for him was the presence of the
children. He was sorry to see them suffering, but he was always
at his best with young life, and the little patients put him at his
ease.

There were over a hundred cases of scarlet fever, typhus, and
typhoid in the Fever Hospital at Belvedere, and fifty patients in
the Smallpox Hospital in the Parliamentary Road. His duty
was to talk to the patients, to hold services either by their cots
or in the convalescent wards, to write letters to inform relatives
of their admission and progress, and — what he shrank from most
— to visit their homes, or the homes of their friends, with the
intimation that they had succumbed. So much walking had he
to do that his muscles grew to be like cords of steel.

Smallpox became epidemic in the city, the number of patients
rapidly mounted up, and his time and energies were so tasked
that his own studies were put aside or pursued when the world
was asleep. His father anxiously urged him to give up part of
his duties, but he would not hear of it. " With God's help and
good health and plenty of Aberdeen pluck I shall yet get through
it all."

What he went through might have unnerved a less robust
and resolute nature. " I am become," he said, " the Priest of
Death." He watched the patients closely in order to be with
them in the interval of consciousness between the period of delirium
and the passing away. It was then that souls revealed themselves.

THE PRIEST OF DEATH 31

" Sit down," he would hear some hoarse and eager voice exclaim —
"sit down and tell me something about God." In a few hours
the speaker would be dead.

The cases in the Smallpox Hospital rose to 240, and those in
the Fever Hospital to 320. The deaths averaged three per day :
twelve corpses lay at one time in the smallpox morgue awaiting
burial. " I am afraid," he said, " I am getting too familiar with
death." Often in a whole ward there would not be a pair of
intelligent eyes : all were ablaze with delirium. Many of the
patients were belted down to their beds. Numbers died moaning
in agony as he passed along. The odour of the diseased bodies
was horrible : he would stumble out, sick, into the open air and
go to his lodgings and refuse all food. " Sometimes," he wrote,
" my heart is like to burst amongst such awful scenes, and yet I
would need ever to have a smile on my face to cheer the nurses
and the patients." It was his faith in God and his belief that
he would be guided and helped that kept him calm and strong.
Nurses were struck down and died, but he had no fear for himself :
he was, indeed, ready for further service and sacrifice. " My
smallpox experience has given me a wonderful influence with
the patients, and to gain the same advantage with the others
I am quite ready to go through the ordeal of typhus if it should
please God thus to order it." Yet he was not conscious of heroism
but only of a humble willingness to do his duty.

He was at a work involving constant peril to his health and
to life itself and receiving remuneration below what others in a
similar position were obtaining without any risk. The Directors
admitted this, and because of his " praiseworthy devotedness "
raised his salary to £100, for which he returned humble and grateful
thanks to God. To him money was only of value so far as it
ministered to the advance of His work. He never spent it on any
useless object, but was generous whenever the cause of right was
concerned. A little incident at this time was characteristic of
his spirit. Winning a scholarship of £10, his pleasure was damped
by the fact that a fellow-student had failed. He sent the latter
£5, with the assurance that it was rightfully his. " You worked
as hard as I did," he wrote, " and had you not gone in for the
scholarship I would not have done so either, and so it is yours
as much as mine." The student, however, was as honourable
and as spirited as himself, and the money was returned.

Miss Telford grew to appreciate the sterling character of the
young missionary. She became his kind and loyal friend, intro-

32 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

duced him to her home and to the society of her two sisters, and
in many practical ways helped him then and afterwards.

One day she said to him, " Why do you always stop at the
ropewalk and the brickwork on your way to Belvedere ? "

He looked surprised. " How do you know that ? " he asked.

" Never mind — why do you waste your time standing so long
there? " she demanded, with mock severity.

" I am not wasting my time. I am trying to pick up a know-
ledge of the two crafts — I want to know how to make ropes and
how to make bricks."

" Why ? "

" Because it will come in useful in the future when I am in
Africa."

Another home where he was always welcome was that of his
fellow-student, Robertson, who lived with a brother and sister :
there he was at his best and spent many a happy hour. Like the
Telfords they had no fear of infection, a contrast to some of his
friends, who were inclined to give him a wide berth because of the
nature of his work. "I had to live a sort of hermit life," he
said, "shunned by most as a leper." He was, however, conscious
of the danger, and sometimes declined to pay visits in consequence.
This was the reason he gave when excusing himself from calling
on the family of Miss Moir, well known later as Mrs. Forsyth,
"the loneliest woman in Africa."

VIII. A Street Decoy

It was a time of religious revival in Glasgow. Messrs. Moody
and Sankey had been stirring the city, and much redemptive social
work was going on. Laws, with other students, took part, in a
subordinate capacity, in some of the meetings, and gave help
wherever it was required. His strangest experiences occurred in
connection with a rescue movement with which Mr. Quarrier was
associated. Midnight suppers were instituted with the object of
getting hold of the outcast women and girls of the street and
inducing them to enter a home. The method proved successful,
considerable numbers being rescued in a single night. As all
would not come voluntarily, " drives " were organized in which
divinity and medical students assisted, acting the part of decoys
to lure the street -walkers to the hall. The entire party first met
for conference and prayer and at ten o'clock walked out in couples
into the lighted thoroughfares.

A STREET DECOY 33

Laws and a fellow-student were told off to do Sauchiehall
Street, up and down which they sauntered watching for the type
they were out to seek. It was a difficult and delicate and some-
what embarrassing task, for students whom they knew would pass
and eye them curiously. They failed in most of their efforts
until they separated, when it was easy enough to secure the one
marked down. A beautiful girl of sixteen fell first to Laws. As
they turned into the darker streets she told him a wretched story
of a stepmother and father who had kicked her out of doors. He
wondered what his own father would say if he were told that his
son had been seen walking arm in arm with a girl of the street.
Adroitly, and almost without her being aware of it, he shepherded
her into the hall, and went off to find others. Over a hundred
were finally gathered, mostly young girls, and about forty declared
for a new life. The one whom Laws had first picked up was taken
in charge by a lady, who found her story to be true.

There was tragedy and pathos in what he saw and heard that
night, but for sheer brutality nothing exceeded the scenes he
witnessed in connection with the work of the Glasgow Medical
Mission. This organization existed for the benefit of those too
poor to pay for a doctor, and the staff being short Laws lent them
a hand, working at the dispensary for one or two hours daily,
prescribing, extracting teeth, and generally turning his medical
attainments to account. It was not only useful practice, develop-
ing his confidence and increasing his knowledge, but he made it
a substitute for walking the hospital. " I preferred," he said,
" doing it in connection with the Medical Mission where Chris-
tianity is proclaimed than doing it in connection with the Infirmary
as a mere piece of scientific duty."

By and by he visited patients in their homes and added mid-
wifery cases to his other practice. What he saw of the depths of
human life in the city cannot be described. One incident may
be given by way of illustration. In a house off the Gallowgate
which had barely any furniture he found a woman lying on straw
without any covering, with a newly born baby, wrapped in a few
rags, by her side. In came the husband, who had been drunk
for three weeks, a bottle of whisky in his hand. With some
coaxing Laws got him out and placed a woman with her back to
the door while he attended to the patient. The husband insisted
on re-entering, and bursting open the door he sent the woman
sprawling to the other side of the room. Laws, coat off, shirt-
sleeves rolled up, hands covered with blood, jumped upon the
3

34 LAWS OF LIVINGSTON I A

fellow and sent him hurtling towards the door. A fierce struggle
ensued : the man was big and brawny and Laws wrenched his
back in forcing him out. He whistled for a policeman, and a dozen
women seized the drunkard and thrust him into a neighbouring
room and kept him there until the skeleton on the straw was
attended to. All her clothes having been pawned, a wrapper
was borrowed from a neighbour to cover her.

It was scenes like this that made Laws realize vividly how
little one half of the world knew how the other half lived. Delicate
feeling is not nourished amidst the ugliness and indecencies of life,
and it would not have been surprising had familiarity with the
coarseness of human nature hardened his sensibilities : that he
went through what he did with so little scathe indicated that
he was made of truest steel. For it is only the highest that can
bend to the lowest without hurt.

These experiences proved a valuable part of his training : they
helped to lessen the inevitable shock when he came in contact
with primitive races, and fitted him in a peculiar way to meet and
combat the debasement of heathenism. As his father used often
to quote, " When God wants an instrument for hard work He
tempers it in a hot furnace."

Such stern contact with the actualities of life made his college
work seem formal and unreal. He grew dissatisfied with learned
sermons, and we find him writing with remarkable prevision :
" My sphere seems to be that of the evangelist, to break up new
ground, speak the simple truths of the Gospel, and heal the sick.
More than once I have been on the eve of throwing the Hall to
the winds and sticking to my medicine alone, which gives me
scope enough for preaching." But this was a thought unbared
only to his intimates : his mind was too well-balanced to remain
long in such a mood.

By this time he and Robertson had become like brothers.
When they returned to Edinburgh for the Hall classes Laws wished
to lodge with his friend, but Robertson had another room-companion
who would not part from him. Laws was not to be beaten : he
showed that persistence and resource which were to become so
marked in his later life. " I have often slept on a couch in the
Infirmary," he said, " and if the landlady does not object I'll
make the sofa my bed." And so it was arranged, " and," says
Mr. Robertson, " a happier trio it would have been hard to find.
We attended diligently to our work and we had our recreations.
Our wrestling was not all intellectual, and I must admit that

THE COMMITTEE'S SMILE 35

Laws could easily floor me ; he was much stronger than I. We
had another friend who was inclined to be melancholy, and when
he came in there was sure to be a racket, always begun by Laws,
and it might end in our being all on the floor together. Our friend,
when the rumpus was over, would express a doubt as to whether
or not we had been doing right. Laws never had any doubt as
to its Tightness. He would say when he was gone that even from
the medical point of view ' a good shaking up was the best thing
for him.' I must say our friend enjoyed his ' shaking up,' though
he looked somewhat serious after it was over. We always had
worship together before going to bed. We read our Greek New
Testament and took the prayer in turn. Laws had no great pro-
fusion of words. His petitions were simple and direct, but there
was about them a wonderful ring of reality and earnestness. He
was every inch a man, true, tender, and Christlike ; strong, un-
hesitating, and decided. When he saw anything that needed to be
done he simply went and did it."

IX. The Committee's Smile

The future was often in his thoughts. India was tempting, — Dr.
Shepherd was there, beginning a distinguished career, — but always
when he weighed its claims the vision of a host of black faces,
reproachful and appealing, rose before him, and his mind swung
back to Africa. To the needs of Kafraria he was not indifferent,
but no difficulty was experienced in securing men to go there.
Old Calabar, again, had always attracted him, and it needed agents,
while his cousin, Alec Cruickshank, was planning to make it his
sphere. His leaning towards it was so well known that Dr. Robb
wrote and congratulated him on a decision he had not made.
" We want to see some Aberdonian vigour and sense added to
the agency," he said. Laws wrote immediately to undeceive him.
" My mind is on Africa. I have often thought of Old Calabar,
but my father will not allow me to go there." " Never mind,''
replied Robb, " God will direct you. If you go elsewhere it is
no loss that a friend gets." It was always the interior of Africa
that his thoughts dwelt on — " I find it impossible," he said, " to
set its claims aside." Meanwhile he went on with his medical
studies at the University and Andersonian College, and all his
other work.

One day in May 1874 he picked up the Glasgow Herald and read
the speech which Dr. Stewart had given the night before in the

36 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

General Assembly of the Free Church. When he came to the part
proposing a mission in Central Africa as the best memorial to
Livingstone he laid down the paper.

" That," he said, " is the very work I have been longing for
and which for years I have been preparing for. If only the United
Presbyterian Church would unite in the plan ! And if only I
were honoured to be the doctor of the expedition ! "

Hearing no more of the project he made no move in connection
with it. In October he happened to be at the United Presbyterian
Church Offices, and Dr. MacGill, the Foreign Mission Secretary,
asked him to come and be introduced to the Board, which was
then sitting.

" This is Mr. Laws," he said, " now finishing his third session
at the Hall and intending to be a foreign missionary of our Church."
The Convener welcomed him. " Are you proposing to leave
yourself in our hands ? " he asked.

" No " — decisively — " you might want me to go to a place I
am not fitted for."

" Have you fixed on any particular field you would like to go
to? "

" Yes."

" Where is that ? "

" Central Africa."

A smile of derision passed round the room.

Laws instantly stiffened ; that smile roused all the obstinate
determination in his nature. Once before a smile had hastened
his purpose, and it would be strange, he thought, if another,
different in character, should be the means of settling his career
and sphere of work.

" Our Church has no mission there," was the rejoinder of the
Convener.

" I know that, but there is room enough and people enough."

" Perhaps," a member insinuated, " the account of Mr.
Edgerley's explorations in Calabar is the origin of your quixotic
proposal ? "

" I have not seen it," was the quiet reply.

Dr. MacGill broke in. " It has been the dream of our Church
that Old Calabar might be a key to Central Africa, but I am afraid
it is only a dream : there seems little hope of it being realized."

" Would you be willing to go to Jamaica ? " continued the
Convener.

" No, I have no desire to go there — rather the reverse."

THE COMMITTEE'S SMILE 37

" We are most in need of missionaries there just now. Have
you any special reason for not going ? "

" No, I have just the feeling that it is not the place for me."

" Is it on account of health ? " inquired a member.

" It cannot be that," remarked Dr. MacGill, " when he speaks
of Central Africa ! "

Laws scanned the faces again. On one there was now a look of
friendly interest.

" You cannot, then, give us any definite answer to-day ? "

" No — I would have to consult my father first."

" Young man," came from a member, " when I went out as a
missionary I did not consult my father."

" My father, sir, gave me to the foreign field at my birth, and
I could not go without his blessing and prayers."

No more was said. Laws walked out and along the streets in
a tumult of feeling. By and by his heart grew quiet and he said
to himself, " Be the future what it may, God will direct it aright
and guide me in the path in which He would have me walk, and
may I have patience to wait and grace to prepare for the work He
may have for me to do."

Returning to Glasgow after the Christmas holidays he met a
fellow-medical student in the train who said, " Have you heard
about the Livingstonia Expedition ? "

" No ; I thought the idea was dropped."

" Dropped ! No, Black and Macklin are going with it."

" They are fortunate. Are the U.P.'s joining in ? "

" Only the Reformed Presbyterian Church as far as I know."

With a sigh of regret Laws banished the matter from his
mind.

Shortly afterwards he was at a prayer-meeting for medical
students and Black was there. Laws accosted him.

" I hear you are going to Africa."

" Not just yet," was the regretful reply. " I cannot complete
my studies for two years. But, Laws, will you go ? "

" No. I am pledged to the U.P. Church, and Livingstonia is a
Free Church mission."

" What of it ? Would you like to see Dr. Stewart ? "

" I have no objection."

He gave the matter anxious thought during many a wakeful
night, unable to rid himself of the feeling that this was the work
for which he had all along been preparing. He knew the risks
involved, but these gave him not a single thought. If it was his

38 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

duty to go he would go. Christ would be in Africa as well as in
Scotland.

The meeting was arranged. Black introduced Laws, and they
talked together. Stewart was impressed by the intellectual vigour,
resolute determination, and spiritual feeling of the young man.

" This," he said, " is my man if I can get him."

He frankly described the difficulties and dangers of the work,
but found that Laws already knew them all. At last came the
definite question :

" If the Foreign Mission Board allow you to join the Expedi-
tion, will you come ? "

" I will if it can be done without breaking my connection with
my Church. I will do nothing that is in the slightest degree dis-
honourable."

The matter was put formally to him at a meeting of the Free
Church Board. Being asked by Dr. Stewart if he were still of the
same mind, and would go with the party as medical officer, he
replied :

" This is the work I have for years wished. Get the United
Presbyterian Foreign Mission Board to say to me ' Go ' and I go."

He passionately desired that his Church should share in the
venture, and wrote to Dr. MacGill : " It seems to me that God is
opening up a way to bring about Christian union which so many
long to see. If this is inadvisable at present then I wish to be sent,
not to the Free Church or the Reformed Presbyterian Church, but
to the work itself. To me differences in evangelical churches are
as the tartans of different regiments. I care little for the pattern
worn by the soldier, but I care much as to how he fights and still
more about the issue of the battle."

The subject was also discussed in Aberdeen, and his father
conferred with Miss Melville, whose intuition saw a way out of the
difficulty.

" We will lend him for two years as the United Presbyterian
contribution to the scheme ! " she exclaimed.

" Don't be alarmed," she wrote to her " boy," as she still called
her old scholar. " We arc not slave-dealers or kidnappers ! "

The suggestion went forward to a friend in Edinburgh, who
brought it before Dr. MacGill, who passed it on to Dr. Duff, with the
result that it was accepted. " If," wrote Dr. MacGill to Laws, " at
the end of two years you propose a mission of our own somewhere
round Lake Nyasa I think it likely your request will be granted."

One night Dr. MacGill introduced him to the member of the

THE COMMITTEE'S SMILE 39

Board who had smiled his friendly interest at the first meeting. He
was Mr. James Thin, a well-known Edinburgh publisher and book-
seller, an authority on hymnology, and a great student and sup-
porter of foreign missions. In Bristo Street United Presbyterian
Church, of which he was a member, a Mr. George Laing had died
and left a fund making provision for a missionary in some new
field. Mr. Thin was one of the trustees.

" We have decided," he said, " first, to devote £300 a year to
this object, second, to take Livingstonia as our field, and " —
smiling the same appreciative smile — " third, to adopt you as our
man : you will be designated the Laing Missionary, and we bind
ourselves to appoint you for five years at the least. Our congrega-
tion is going to give you your outfit."

Thus in a wonderful way the United Presbyterian Church was
linked to the Expedition, not only providing a man well trained
for the work, but also his salary, the circumstance constituting a
union of the churches long before the organic connection was
accomplished.

Mr. Thin asked Laws to his house. He had a family of sons
whom he jocularly introduced as " the thin boys " ; these made him
so much at home then and afterwards that he looked upon them as
brothers. " Mrs. Thin's motherly care and kindness," he said, " I
can never forget."

The following months were exceedingly laborious. He was
studying hard for his final medical examinations, preparing for his
Presbytery trials previous to licence, and assisting Dr. Stewart in
the arrangements for the expedition. Stewart must have thought
he had got hold of a very enthusiastic young man. Returning to
Glasgow late one night from Dundee, he hailed a cab at the station
and was driving off when Laws, who had been waiting for him to
consult about instruments, opened the door and jumped in, and it
was 2 a.m. before they parted. His father watched him and
trembled : the work seemed too much even for such an earnest
plodder as he knew his son to be, and it would be a blow if he failed
at the last. Resigning his Glasgow post in March, he strongly
recommended Mr. James Macnee, a student of ability and courage,
and a City Mission worker, as his successor ; but having had none
of the major fevers the latter was given another appointment. It
fell to the lot of Macnee to make a presentation to the Doctor, who
expressed the hope that he would see him in Africa. Macnee went
instead to Jamaica, where he became one of the missionary states-
men of that island and later an elected member of the Legislative

4o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Council. Of Laws he says : " A more simple-minded, earnest, whole-
hearted, and devoted worker it would be impossible to meet. Our
short fellowship continues a fragrant memory."

Concentrating on essentials Laws in April at Aberdeen passed
his examinations, and was capped M.B., CM., and also licensed
and ordained. " He was radiant," says his friend Robertson, who
was present at the ordination, " feeling that now the Wilderness was
past and that he had received the command, ' Go up and possess the
promised land.' " During the ceremony he had an unaccountable
feeling that some one was looking down upon him from his old pew
in the gallery, and he instinctively glanced up. His mother had
sat there.

He had reached his second goal. The training had been severe ;
he had been tested and tempered by toil, self-denial, and endurance,
and had developed all the qualities needed for the service that
awaited him. His high ideals of duty and work ; his conscien-
tiousness, perseverance, self-reliance, and tenacity ; his knowledge
of handicraft and business ; his medical skill and his general
intellectual attainments ; — all fitted him for the position of pioneer
and leader in a new and difficult country. But the years of pre-
paration had left their mark upon him. When, in later life, he was
questioned in regard to them he would give an evasive reply, but
one noticed that his eye would grow cold and his expression stiffen
as if at some unpleasant memory.

X. Making Ready

It was no light task that lay before the Livingstonia Expedition.
It was proceeding to the interior of a vast country that was practi-
cally unknown : of the exact conditions prevailing in it no one had
any idea, except that it was the scene of intertribal warfare and
the focus of the slave trade ; it was a foodless land for civilized
man ; there was no regular communication to the nearest point on
the coast, and no communication at all on the rivers leading up to
it ; the seaboard was in the possession of the Portuguese, who were
inimical to exploration and settlement by other nations. Into that
savage and turbulent country the little band of missionaries were
going, without escort or protection of any kind, carrying simply a
message of peace and goodwill, trusting to the sheer force of their
moral and spiritual appeal rather than to the display of armed
power. It was this that made the appointment of a staff so peculi-
arly important, for everything depended on the character and dis-

MAKING READY 41

position of those who composed it. One tropical Robinson Crusoe
cannot quarrel with himself, but when a number have to spend
their time in intimate intercourse it is not always possible to be
gracious and even-tempered. A nature that is buttressed by con-
vention and the higher life about it at home may prove pitiably
weak and ill-conditioned in the fierce atmosphere of a primitive
land.

Business at Lovedale prevented Dr. Stewart filling the post of
leader and a substitute had to be found. There was but one man
in Britain specially qualified for taking out the Expedition and
seeing it settled. This was Mr. Edward D. Young. As a first-
class gunner in the Royal Navy he had seen service in many
waters, including the east coast of Africa, where he had been in
command of cruising expeditions in search of slave-runners. He
had served under Dr. Livingstone on the Zambezi, and when the
explorer was reported murdered he was dispatched by the Ad-
miralty to Lake Nyasa to investigate the rumour. Ascending the
rivers in a steel boat called the Search, he was able in a remarkably
short time to prove it baseless. He therefore knew the whole
route to be traversed by the Expedition and all the difficulties to
be encountered. Now, at forty, he was divisional officer of coast-
guard at Dungeness, an easy and comfortable berth. Dr. Stewart
went to see him and explained the position. " This work has got
to be done," he said. " As I can't go, will you take my place ? "

" I can but try," was the reply. " I am long past the age when
love of adventure "would tempt me, but I will go as a matter of
duty."

When Laws saw Young he was impressed by his manner and
temperament : he was thoroughgoing, earnest, determined, and
with a sense of humour which would be invaluable in Africa. His
hatred of slavery amounted almost to an obsession, but this the
Doctor thought was one of the best points in his favour.

Laws, as medical officer, was second in command, with the duty
of keeping a daily journal of events and making scientific observa-
tions, especially as regards the connection between climate and
health. The utmost importance was attached to his work, as the
future welfare and success of the Mission would depend upon the
information gained. The arrangements for beginning and carrying
on school, industrial, and general mission work were also left in his
hands.

After careful consideration the other members of the party
were selected as follows : John Macfadyen, 1st Engineer and Black'

42 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

smith ; Allan Simpson, 2nd Engineer ; George Johnston, Car-
penter ; Alex. Riddel, Agriculturist ; and Wm. Baker, Ordinary
Seaman, R.N.

In addition to these, Mr. Henry Henderson was attached to the
Expedition as the agent of the Church of Scotland.

Young and Baker were Englishmen ; Johnston and Riddel
came, like Laws, from Aberdeen ; Macfadyen was from Glasgow,
and Simpson from Fife. Four belonged to the Free Church, one
to the United Presbyterian body, one to the Church of Scotland,
one to the Church of England, and one was a Baptist.

By some strange mischance a brilliant spirit was lost to the
Mission. Alexander Mackay applied to join the party, but his
letter was apparently overlooked, and when the matter was brought
to the notice of Dr. Stewart it was too late. Mackay went instead
to Uganda, where he won fame, and met a martyr's death.

All hopes centred on a steamer to carry the party up the Zambezi
and Shire and to navigate the Lake. To see such a craft on its
waters had been Dr. Livingstone's dream. A small vessel was,
therefore, designed, and its construction put into the skilled hands
of Messrs. Yarrow & Headley, of Mil wall. It was 48 feet long, with
a hull of steel plates fastened with bolts in sections, each section of
the weight of a native load, and it drew only 3 feet of water. At
first it was planned to fit her with three boilers, but one was dis-
carded. Even two, it was feared, would be too heavy to mani-
pulate at the cataracts. The ingenuity of Mr. Young, of Kelly,
came to the rescue : he devised an arrangement by which one
boiler could do the work of two when speed was no longer material.
He was so delighted with the success of the device that at the trial
trip he lapsed into Scots in his excitement : " We've done it !
Eight knots an hour, with one biler ! " At the ceremonial trip
Miss Annie Mackenzie, sister of Bishop Mackenzie, of the ill-fated
Universities Mission expedition, was present, and taken a short run.
She had been up the Zambezi, and thus the new venture was, in a
way, linked on to the first attempt to plant the gospel in Central
Africa.

The steamer was named the Ilala, after the spot where Dr.
Livingstone died. Two teak boats, the larger called the Ethiop,
the smaller the Sphinx, for river communication work, and a
dinghy for general use, were also provided. Much thought was
expended on the selection of stores, provisions having to be taken
for two years, and on the barter goods — which included 15,000 yards
of calico — and medicines, and also on personal outfit. Each man

MAKING READY 43

was allowed 100 lb. weight of luggage. " Take nothing un-
necessary," was Dr. Stewart's hint to Dr. Laws, " and of necessary
things, what is necessary only ! " Books and scientific instru-
ments were the two main items in the Doctor's list. With customary
forethought he constructed with his own hands small oblong boxes,
lined with tin, so that when the top was unscrewed they could form
bookshelves. They fulfilled the purpose to perfection, and after
nearly half a century's use in his library, were as good as new. He
often humorously claimed to be the real inventor of the sectional
bookcase.

The Expedition had the sympathy and approval of the British
Government. Difficulties, the Livingstonia Committee foresaw,
might arise requiring the exercise of powers not possessed by the
members of the Mission, and the request was made to the Foreign
Office that Young might be invested with consular authority. Lord
Derby, after giving the matter full consideration, thought that
this would be inexpedient. It would give a tentative expedition,
started by private subscription and not subject to Government
control, an official character ; but he reaffirmed the Government's
interest in the enterprise and its desire to help it in every possible
way. The Committee, however, proved to be right : had their
suggestion been adopted much painful trouble would have been
avoided.

An important office which the Government performed was to
smooth away the political obstructions that had caused Dr.
Livingstone such -endless annoyance. Portugal was an adept in
the art of passive resistance. It had undertaken readily enough
to put down the slave traffic, but this was too profitable to be
suppressed completely, and continued quietly to be carried on. The
desire of the traders, naturally, was to be left alone. When, how-
ever, it was learned that the Expedition was not an aggressive trading
concern, but only what seemed a small and harmless religious
mission, a promise was given that all facilities and help would
be forthcoming within the sphere of its control.

Never was pioneer missionary expedition supplied with such
precise and comprehensive instructions as to conduct, work, and
policy. These were printed and each member was given a copy.

The position of the settlement had been decided by public
sentiment as well as by practical considerations. It was to be
on the great lake that Dr. Livingstone loved. Even the exact
spot was indicated — the north-east corner of Cape Maclear — though
it was pointed out that this might not be suitable for a permanent

44 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

site, and the final selection was left to those on the spot. On the
difficult question of armed resistance to the slave trade it was
stated that no rule could be laid down save one which was absolute,
that active interference by force on their side was never to be
resorted to :

" The first shot fired in any hostilities against Arab or native
slave dealers will do more to paralyse the varied efforts of the
members of the Expedition than any temporary success in the
liberation of slaves can possibly counterbalance. Any aid of this
kind will also immediately surround the mission with an atmosphere
of insecurity, which years will not disperse. . . . The only circum-
stances in which firearms can be justifiably used will be in self-
defence or in case of actual attack, which is scarcely likely to happen,
but if this should occur you will, of course, be bound to defend
3'ourselves. It will be better to try the effect of conciliation,
forbearance, and patient endurance to the utmost, and even to
retire for a time. Livingstone's journals will be found to supply
some excellent examples of what is here indicated. . . . Remember
that simple acts of kindness and courtesy are never thrown away,
even on a savage people."

Some excellent advice was offered as to the care of their health.
" Your first and constant and most important duty will be so
to live and act by attention to diet, hours of work and rest, as to
keep up a fair amount of health : nothing will do the enterprise
more good at home than favourable reports of all the members
of the staff." A system of rational recreation was also suggested.

Frank counsel was given as to personal conduct. Difficulties
would no doubt arise ; the irritability and excitement accom-
panying fever would cause coldness, temper, and depression ;
they were exhorted to overcome ebullitions and estrangements
of feeling, and to keep up their faith and courage. To think of
failure as probable was the beginning of defeat. They were to
think rather of the great issues that were dependent on their
success, and how disastrous to the cause of Christianity any failure
would be.

XL Outward Bound

The Doctor's last days in Aberdeen were spent in a whirl of
movement. One of the events was a public meeting in the interests
of the mission, at which both Stewart and Young were present.
The enthusiasm was so infectious that after the proceedings
Prof. Robertson Smith came up to Dr. Laws and said, " Have you

OUTWARD BOUND

45

any use for a Professor of Hebrew in Livingstonia ? " Another
meeting was held in the Y.M.C.A. rooms, at which Laws spoke on
Livingstonia. Having no map on Africa he called for a bit of
soap and drew the continent on a large mirror in the room. When
he afterwards recalled the incident he laughed and said, " It was
a piece of presumption on my part to lecture on a place I had
never seen." An interested member of the audience was a young
man named Elmslie,who was later to become the Doctor's colleague
and have an adventurous career of his own.

Amongst those he met at Miss Melville's was a Miss Waterston
from Lovedale, who was studying medicine with a view to offering
for Livingstonia. " She is full of life, buoyancy of spirits, and
physical activity, and talks good sense," wrote Laws, "and if
God spares her she will be useful to the mission."

Followed by the thoughts and prayers of many friends, and
accompanied by his father and stepmother, he left Aberdeen on
12th May for Edinburgh. They stayed with the Thins, and Miss
Gray — to whom he was now engaged — was also a guest. One
of the interviews he had in the city was with Dr. Livingstone's
daughter, who discussed with him the prospects of the Expedition.
When the parting came his stepmother threw her arms round him
in motherly affection. " Ah," he thought, " if only she had done
that years ago ! " He was beginning, however, to understand
her better than in the old days. " Robert," said his father, " I
look forward to seeing you again, when I expect to hear from you
news of the progress of the Master's Kingdom."

It was his first journey south. " I never felt lonely in my life
except once," he said, after he had probed the solitudes of Africa
to their depths, " and that was when I arrived in London in 1875."
But he was plunged instantly into a bustle of preparation : so
busy was he that he was unable to visit Livingstone's grave in
the Abbey. He went down to Milwall to inspect the Ilala, watched
her being taken to pieces, and minutely studied the manner of
her construction, that he might be the better able to supervise
the process of putting her together in Africa. Then he saw Dr.
Stewart off to Cape Town, went out to Kew, heard Spurgeon
preach, spent an evening poring over Dr. Livingstone's maps
and papers with the Rev. Horace Waller, — one of the members
of the first Universities Mission party, and the editor of the Last
Journals — and called on Dr. Moffat, whom he met for the first time.
The veteran missionary grew so interested in the talk about the
Expedition that he unconsciously used a Scottish word. " You

46 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

have not forgotten the Doric," his visitor remarked, smiling.
" Forgotten my mother tongue ! — not likely," and there was
nothing but good Scots spoken by both during the rest of the
interview.

On 21st May the party boarded the mail steamer Walmer
Castle in the West India Docks. Amongst those present to bid
them farewell were Dr. Duff, Dr. Goold (representing the Reformed
Presbyterian Church), the Rev. Horace Waller, Captain (afterwards
Admiral) Wilson, Mrs. Young, and Miss Young, then a girl of sixteen.
" My recollection of Dr. Laws," says Miss Young, " is of a quiet,
grave, unassuming young man, who talked to myself and others
as we stood on the deck." One of the " others " was Captain
Wilson, a gallant Christian sailor who had, while engaged on the
East Coast in the suppression of the slave trade, been associated
with Dr. Livingstone and Dr. Stewart. He gave the Doctor much
useful advice. " One of the best things you can do," he said, " is
to learn to think ahead. In my career I have found that there
is a great difference between one man and another, and that the
man who gets on is the man who thinks and looks ahead." Laws
had been doing this insensibly all his life, but the emphatic assertion
of the truth from a man of such experience sank deep into his
mind, and he began from that moment more consciously to act
upon it, and to this habit he attributed much of what he was able
to accomplish.

The party gathered at the far end of the deserted saloon for
a farewell service. It was conducted by Dr. Duff, who prayed
with such absorption that the warning bells rang unheeded, and
the vessel began to move. Miss Young, looking up, saw with a
little thrill of excitement the buildings on the quay gliding past
the portholes. When the visitors were at last hurried to the deck
the vessel was being warped out of the dock, and a gangway had
hastily to be thrown across to the pier to let them ashore.

The voyage was without incident. Laws occupied himself
with studying a native vocabulary compiled by the Universities
Mission, on which Mr. Waller had marked in red ink the most
important words to be acquired. At Cape Town Dr. Stewart
met them at the docks with the news that no steamer to convey
the party to the Zambezi could be found, and that he had been
compelled to charter a schooner of 133 tons, the Harah, for the
purpose.

" British ? " queried Laws.

" No, German."

OUTWARD BOUND 47

" And so Germany is also to have a share in the work of taking
the gospel to Central Africa ? " was the Doctor's comment.

"It is in keeping with the catholic spirit of the mission that
you should sail under the German flag. You will find Captain
Felix Rasper and Henry Schultze, the mates, fine fellows."

So strong was the interest in the Expedition that a public
meeting, the largest and most representative of its kind ever held
in the city, bade the party at once welcome and farewell. The
Speaker of the House of Assembly presided, and the Premier,
Secretary for Native Affairs, the ministers of the various religious
bodies, and many well-known public men were present. The
brief speech of Laws was mainly directed to correcting a popular
idea that the Expedition had the promotion of commerce as its
chief aim.

Several additions were made to the party. A gang of slaves
had once been liberated by Dr. Livingstone and Bishop Mackenzie,
and afterwards brought down to the Cape and educated. From
these were selected Lorenzo Johnston, a married man, with some
knowledge of boat work, as cook ; Samuel Sambani, married, as
interpreter; Thomas Boquito, also married, as general servant.
To the wives of these it was arranged to pay a monthly allowance
during their absence. Frederick Sorokuti, an unmarried native,
was also taken on in a general capacity.

When the Harah left the docks on 26th June the harbour-
master told a tugboat to give them a " good send-off," and after
towing out the vessel it circled round three times and then gave
a parting cheer. A call was made at Algoa Bay, where the W aimer
Castle had landed a portion of the stores unget-at-able at the Cape.
Mr. Young decided to wait for the overland mail, and dispatched
Laws on shore for the letters. This was on 5th July. He hung
about the post office all afternoon and evening, the Dutch clerks
grumbling at the pertinacity of the Scot who worried them so often.
Evening passed into night. Standing in the darkness he saw what
seemed a familiar figure approaching : it was Dr. Stewart, who
had come to bid the party farewell. They adjourned to an hotel,
where, after a talk, both knelt down and committed themselves
to the Lord of Missions. Laws returned to his station at the post
office. It was 4 a.m. when the mail-cart arrived. Securing the
letters, he hastened to the shore. Sail was already set on the
Harah, and when the look-out caught sight of him the anchor was
raised. As he reached the deck the vessel moved off before a
light wind from the north-east. A sense of exhilaration pervaded

48 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the party ; they had at last cut contact with civilization ; their
adventurous journey had begun.

As the Doctor stood gazing over the quiet waters now touched
by the light of dawn, words of solemn beauty were passing, like
a strain of music, through his brain. He had received a final
letter from Dr. Stewart.

" And now," it concluded, " may God be with you and all your
companions, and give you strength and patience, and lighten your
path and your labours with the sense of His own presence. The
Lord bless thee and keep thee, and give thee peace"

ELEPHANT I?

DOMWE I?

PASSAGE {.HEAHLYDfiv)

OTTER POINT

VILLAGE OF \°o°°

M PAN GO \°°°
,00

Sketch Map of Cape Maclear

The Last

The Cemetery at Cape Maclear (p. 115)

PART TWO
THE YEARS OF SETTLEMENT

I. At the Mouth of the Zambezi

The Harah kept well into the coast, the sea being calm and the
breeze light, but gradually the weather changed : heavy squalls
were encountered and a strong sea, with fitful bursts of thunder
and lightning. On the morning of the 13th, suddenly, a tornado
swept down astern, sending the vessel plunging forward in blinding
rain to the accompaniment of lightning flash and crash of thunder.
All hands were turned to the work of hauling in the sail, and Dr.
Laws found himself, for the first time in his life, doing a sailor's
job. As he was busy reefing, the chain of the squaresail snapped
under the pressure of the wind, and the sail came down by the
run and lay floating overboard, and he assisted in securing it.
The vessel ran under bare poles until the gale moderated. Varied
conditions followed, dead calm, squalls, and heavy rain. • On the
19th the coast was sighted and a look-out was kept for the delta
of the Zambezi.

The Doctor had been " thinking ahead," and one day after
worship, which he conducted, he spoke to the members of the
Expedition regarding the enterprise, seeking to lift their thoughts
to its larger aspects and to strengthen their purpose. " The one
thing to keep in view," he said, " is the importance of getting
the steamer on the Lake. We have to concentrate our determina-
tion on that. If we succeed it will prove that Africa can be con-
quered, and other missions will follow and place steamers on the
other lakes. The whole future of the central region of the continent
is in our hands."

The plan was to make for the Kongone mouth of the Zambezi
used by Dr. Livingstone. On standing in to the coast nothing
could be seen save a wall of mangrove swamp, with a line of tree-
tops against the horizon, which stood out clear at sunset against
a crimson sky. For several days the vessel beat up and down
without any opening being descried. Friday, the 21st, dawned
A

50 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

with mist and cloud hanging low over the land. At midday,
through the tremulous heat haze, white breakers were seen, and
Dr. Laws climbed the mast to investigate. It was, without a
doubt, the Kongone mouth. This was Africa — this long, ragged
streak of mangrove beaten upon by the surf, and backed by a
plain of low woodland, steamy and malarious : it might have been
a mud-flat in the ocean, so featureless and lonely and limited it
seemed : there was nothing to indicate that it was the fringe of a
mighty continent.

The tide had fallen too low to permit of an attempt to cross
the bar, but by afternoon the light south-west wind had swept
the haze aside, and at four o'clock the vessel was put to the white
turmoil of waters and passed over with but a slight jar and anchored
in four fathoms by the banks of the river. The scene was for-
bidding in its desolation. There was no sign of Portuguese or
native occupation or even of animal life : a human skull and other
bones on the beach were grim reminders of the savage character
of the land.

In the evening three natives appeared on the bank and were
hailed. Dr. Laws went ashore, and as he stepped out of the boat
they clapped their hands softly — the African form of salutation.
As the Doctor was seeking labour, they were told that whoever
came to work would obtain a yard of calico daily for wages, and
they promised to spread the information. They were as good as
their word, for next morning a number reported and were set
to work clearing a site for the shed and felling trees. Next came
a Portuguese settler, a wretched creature, barefooted and ill-clad,
attended by cringing slaves, who presented a duck and a basket
of cleaned rice. Some cloth was given in return. These amenities
over, Mr. Young visited his house, a squalid hut in which a slave
was, by way of punishment, sitting with two heavy logs of wood
fastened to his shoulders.

" English have come." The good news spread far and wide,
and large numbers of natives flocked to the scene. They made
a favourable impression on the Doctor, who acted as roll-keeper
and payer. Some were puny and half-starved, but many were
tall, muscular, and handsome, with open faces, though their bodies
were disfigured by tribal marks. A strip of calico or monkey's
skin round their loins was all their dress. Intelligent and willing
to work, they were, with patience and firmness, easily managed.
" I would," the Doctor wrote, " as readily undertake to teach
them manual labour as I would to train many of the apprentices

AT THE MOUTH OF THE ZAMBEZI 51

in our Scottish workshops." Their chief fault was an incapacity
to tell the truth : they told lies as readily as they took their food.
His method of keeping tally of the workers was to chalk a mark
on the bare backs of each, but finding a tendency for marks to be
transferred to other backs by contact he adopted numbers which
could not be duplicated. Of women few were seen : one or two
came with children whose pretty black faces and big timid eyes
won the heart of the Doctor, always susceptible to the appeal of
the little ones.

By Monday, 26th, the shed was completed and the keel of the
Ilala laid. Then, to the dismay of the party, it was discovered
that the bolts and screws were encrusted with rust : after the
trial trips on the Thames they had been thrown, without being
oiled, into kegs in which sand had been kept. This careless act
entailed much wearisome toil, seasoned with vexation, for each of
the hundreds of bolts had to be scoured and polished before being
used. The natives rapidly acquired the knack of bolting the
sections, and this was a welcome relief to the white men, who had
merely to test the workmanship.

The process of reconstruction proceeded from dawn to sunset,
with only an interval of an hour for breakfast and worship, lunch
being sent ashore from the ship — in the Doctor's case this consisted
of a biscuit and a glass of water partaken while work went on.
Darkness at six o'clock sent all on board for dinner. In addition
to superintending the natives the Doctor undertook any duty that
came to his hand : now he would fell a tree, now fit a frame or
plate on the Ilala or test a bolt ; again he would be pulling an
oar, or prescribing for the sick ; and at night he would write up
the daily journal, a task carefully performed and never omitted,
and conduct worship — "anything," he said, ''that Christ's cause
may be furthered — one thing I can say, I never send others to do
anything I am not ready to do myself."

On Thursday afternoon a canoe arrived with a native who
handed over two packages wrapped in the sleeves of an old water-
proof coat. " An Englishman," he said, " gave me these to deliver
to the first English I saw. You are the first. I was told not to
give them to the Portuguese." They proved to be mail-bags
containing a large number of letters and newspapers, dated 1868,
for Captain Faulkner and the members of his ill-fated expedition.
Faulkner was an elephant hunter who ordered a Chief to be shot :
coming down the river with ivory he was attacked near the same
spot and killed. The mail-bags were sent by the Harah to Cape Town.

52 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

As it was clear that the Ilala would not be able to take all
the stores up the river it was decided to engage native canoes to
convey the balance if they could be procured. On Friday the
Ethiop was fitted with sails and a reed awning, and with Henderson
and Baker in charge and a native crew, left for Mazaro, the first
Portuguese settlement on the Zambezi, about forty miles from the
mouth of the Kongone. There, if anywhere, the necessary craft
would be hired.

By Sunday, ist August, all the plates were bolted, the two boilers
and engine and the shaft and propeller put in place, and the first
coat of paint on. The whole of Monday was occupied in con-
structing a rough slipway for launching the vessel. On Tuesday
all thrilled with pleasant excitement. It was a day of blazing
sunshine, but every one toiled indifferent to the merciless heat.
A pulley was fixed to a chain at the bows of the Ilala, another to
a block in the sand, and a third at the stern to act as a check.
The supports were knocked away, the frame came down on the
rollers, and fifty natives began to haul and strain. The soft sand,
however, gave under the weight and the rollers sank out of sight.
Baffled but unbeaten, Young waited until the tide turned and then
had the Harah brought close in and a hawser passed out from her
windlass. At three o'clock the little steamer slid into the river
and danced lightly on its surface. Three ringing cheers came
from the Germans on the schooner, the natives followed, and the
British added theirs. That evening when the black men came
for their pay the Doctor made them sit down, and through an
interpreter endeavoured to tell them of the Saviour of the World.
" Chakoma ! " (very good !) was their hearty comment.

Then came the reaction. Many of the staff became ill with
the exposure and excessive exertion : both Young and the Doctor
went down ; Simpson was so weak that a return passage was
engaged for him on the Harah. But all struggled on with the
work of fitting the steamer. On Saturday it was given a trial
trip up the river, the white ensign of the Search on the mainmast
and a special flag which the Doctor had designed and prepared
with bunting bought at Cape Town — showing a white dove with
olive branch on a blue ground — flying from the foremast.

When Mr. Henderson returned he said the Portuguese at
Mazaro had been taken by surprise at their appearance. " They
had no idea we were here. But they received us kindly and
helped us to engage four canoes with eight paddlers each."

Between the coast and the Murchison Cataracts lay an immense

A MINOR TRAGEDY 53

flat region of lagoons and marshes — the delta of the Zambezi
covers an area of more than 2000 square miles — and it was resolved
to hasten through this pestiferous tract as rapidly as possible.
The cargo, therefore, was kept low to minimize the danger of
grounding on sandbanks, and in addition to the ordinary stock of
wood a supply of coal was carried to be used in increasing speed
through the plague spots. The remainder of the stores were,
meanwhile, placed in the shed on the bank. There, late on Monday,
the Doctor spent his first night ashore, the mosquitoes swarming
in myriads about him, and forcing him at last to crawl beneath
his mosquito net.

II. A Minor Tragedy

On the following day, Tuesday, 10th August, at noon, the Ilala
started on her inland voyage. Farewell cheers from the Harah
came ringing over the water. It was not without regret that the
two companies parted. Captain Rasper and his mate had tempered
the disagreeable experiences of the voyage by their kindness and
attention ; they had entered with spirit into their share of the
enterprise, and had freely given personal help and the use of the
ship's appliances. They went back to civilization with a cargo
of mangrove poles, and the others disappeared round the bend of
the river bearing the Gospel into the region of the unknown.

The steamer threaded its way along the tortuous course of the
Kongone. In the- absence of Baker, again up-river, Dr. Laws
took the helm in spite of weakness caused by sickness and vomiting.
Before him stretched the shining river, for ever winding, fringed
with banks of tall reeds and grass and occasional clumps of cocoa-
nut and borassus palms, with here and there a receding creek
alive with wild fowl. At dusk a halt was made and the party
had their first experience of sleeping in the vessel. Young and
Laws laid their mattresses in the well-deck aft, Henderson slept
above at the side, and Riddel and Johnston across the stern.
All had mosquito netting.

Next day native pilots were taken on board, and followed by
the Sphinx, with Lorenzo Johnston in charge, the steamer pushed
on through a series of lagoons where the channels were so narrow
that there was scarcely room for it to make its way. In one of
these passages they came upon the hired canoes, which backed
hurriedly into the reeds to let the fire-steamer pass. Drenching
rain fell, such rain as they had never experienced in their lives,

54 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and anxiety was felt regarding the calico in the canoes. Twisting
round they steamed back and ordered the crews to cover the bales
with grass-thatch, and again proceeded with the Sphinx in tow.

In the hot hours of the afternoon, a sudden jar and grating
sound and the stoppage of the engines indicated that they had
run on a sandbank. Anchors and cables were brought into opera-
tion, but without result ; a hippopotamus, curious at this intrusion
into its domain, was a close spectator of the proceedings, moving
constantly around until n p.m., when with the rising of the tide
the vessel was hauled off.

Next morning they were out of the Kongone and threshing
along the broad expanse of the Zambezi, and the Sphinx was left
to make its own way under sail. The impression the scenery
here gave was that of an immense flatness : the broad ribbon of
slow-gliding river, the banks almost flush with the water, the
boundless plain of land — there was not a feature to relieve the
vast and melancholy monotony. Young's previous acquaintance
with the river availed him nothing. The Zambezi is for ever
changing its aspect : new sandbanks and islands are continually
being thrown up ; the current never runs the same course for
long — now it sweeps down one side, now the other ; again it breaks
into a confused waste of swirling waters that stretches from bank
to bank. On this occasion even the pilots, who can usually read
the rivers like a book, were often at a loss, and the Ilala went
aimlessly wandering up and down searching for the true channel,
sometimes scraping the bottom, sometimes running fast upon an
obstruction.

From the masthead nothing could be seen of the Sphinx in
the clear air across the flats ; and in the afternoon it was thought
advisable to anchor and wait. A canoe paddling quietly along
in the shadow of the reeds at sunset was hailed and hired to go
back and look for her. Close upon midnight the boat appeared
with a story of disaster. A sudden breeze had caught her ; she
had heeled over, the crew tumbled to the leeside, and in a moment
she was full of water. The men and the packages fell out together.
Lorenzo shook himself free, cut away the thatch, and detached the
mast and managed to right the boat. One of the crew was known
to be drowned, one was missing, and only two of the others could
be persuaded to re-enter. The baggage lost contained the clothes,
boots, and other personal effects of Young, Johnston, Riddel,
Macfadyen, and Henderson, and was irreplaceable. Young ex-
pressed his mind on the matter with sailor-like bluntness and

LOST IN A LAKE 55

looked grimly at the suit he had on ; it was all he possessed.
Dr. Laws' boxes, fortunately, were on the Ilala, and from his
store he was able to supply some clothes, boots, and mosquito
netting.

By and by in the far distance among the clouds along the
horizon a dim blue shape came into view ; it was Mt. Morambala,
the one outstanding landmark on the Zambezi delta. On Sunday,
Mazaro was sighted on the east bank of the river. The Doctor
was curious to see this outpost of Portuguese civilization. It
proved to be a wretched little settlement with a meagre population
living in terror of lions and native raiders. Nothing was better
fitted to show the shadowy character of the Portuguese claim to
occupy the country. The Commandant received the party with
the courtesy of his race, and begged them to go and shoot a man-
eating lion which had already carried off four villagers. " Why
not send your soldiers ? " was the natural question. " They are
all afraid," he sorrowfully replied. The calm assurance of the
English in proceeding into a wilderness peopled by bloodthirsty
" rebels " was a source of astonishment to the community, though
why they applied the term rebels to natives who had never been
conquered and had never acknowledged the sovereignty of the
Portuguese and even levied tribute on them was not apparent.

Four miles from Mazaro on the opposite bank, facing a broad
stretch of water mottled with islets of sand and in the distance
the mass of Mt. Morambala, stood a low, strongly-constructed
white building amongst a grove of cocoa-nut palms and bamboos.
This was Shupanga, where " Mary Moffat, beloved wife of Dr.
Livingstone," died. Owing to the disturbed state of the country
the place was deserted. Near by, on a rough slope — " the brae
foment the sun " — was the grave shadowed by a great baobob
tree. The wooden cross was still standing, and the space around
was clear of undergrowth, the natives evidently performing this
little office in memory of " Ma Robert."

III. Lost in a Lake

Two days were spent in a fruitless attempt to discover a passage
in the wide reaches of the river. While following in the wake of
the boat which was acting as a pilot the Ilala struck a snag and
heeled over so violently that the starboard gunwale touched the
water. The third day brought no greater success. Entering a
zigzag channel the steamer ran fast on a sandbank : by using

56 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

anchors and cables she was hauled off, but swung round in the
current and again grounded and remained immovable. There
was nothing for it but to unship the whole cargo. Every article
was taken out and deposited on a dry sandbank, and she was left
a mere shell. After infinite labour with anchors, cables, and wind-
lass in the broiling sunshine she was got off and then every man,
white and black, fell into the deep sleep of exhaustion. The
cargo was replaced next day. " We cannot go on like this,"
said Mr. Young. " We must try and find a pilot." One was
eventually secured who guided them successfully through the
maze of sinuous passages. At sunset they sighted a house standing
on the side of a small eminence which indicated the proximity
of the Shire River. While the vessel was wooding next day with
rosemary and ebony logs the Doctor received a call from the house,
and on proceeding there found a girl suffering from phthisis. She
was the daughter of the occupant, Senhora Maria, the half-caste
widow of a Portuguese settler. He did what he could for the
patient, and in return the Senhora sent two large baskets of rice,
some pumpkins, and a bunch of bananas, down to the ship.

In the afternoon they came to what seemed an expansion of
the river with a flat green island in the middle, below which two
strong currents met and produced rough water and shoals that
made the going slow and difficult. " That," said Mr. Young,
pointing to the opening on the left, " is the Zambezi, and that,"
indicating one on the right, " is the river Shire. Here we leave the
Zambezi."

Entering the Shire the air fell dead calm and the current raced
against them so swiftly that at midnight the steamer dragged her
anchor. On the following day a brisk breeze sprang up, and
advantage was taken of it to spread all sail. With full steam on
and the wind blowing astern they bowled along until, with a
tremendous impact, the steamer ran on a mudbank, her stern
rising high in the air, and her crew being thrown hither and thither.
Recovering from the shock, the men leapt into the water and sought
to prevent her settling into the slime. The cargo was again un-
laden and placed on a belt of sand some distance away. When
darkness fell clouds of mosquitoes attacked the party, and large
smoke-fires had to be kept going to ward them off. Once more
the steamer was got afloat and anchored in deep water.

When they entered what appeared to be an extensive lake,
Mr. Young was surprised and puzzled. On his former visit the
river ran between grass-lined banks through a level marshy plain,

LOST IN A LAKE 57

winding and turning upon itself in the most bewildering way :
the blue mass of Mt. Morambala would loom up in front, then
appear behind, and again at the side ; while the land was alive
with buffalo and waterbuck. Now there was nothing but a vast
stretch of yellowish water extending apparently to the far-off
ranges of hills. It was gathered from natives that two years
previously the Zambezi had overflown its banks and flooded
the country lying within the angle at the junction of the two
rivers, so that they could now sail their canoes from the Shire
across to the Zambezi. The lake was thus about twenty miles
in diameter.

Heading straight north they reached a congeries" of lagoons
and channels. The problem was to discover the Shire. Hour
after hour they searched the numberless openings only to find
themselves in a cul-de-sac or following a course which led to the
Zambezi. As night was darkening down, a small object was seen
moving over the lonely wilderness of waters. It was the Ethiop,
which on coming up reported all well. Young dispatched it to
hunt for natives who knew the secret of the cross canals, and
through a wet and miserable night it pursued its task and returned
in the morning with a canoe and two men. These led them to an
opening barred by a ridge of sand round which the Ilala was
cautiously manoeuvred. No channel seemed less inviting. The
Doctor was sent to the masthead to ascertain the course, and
saw only a vague line like a shadow curving amongst the reeds
which extended more than half a mile. Beyond gleamed the river
broad and clear. Descending he took the helm. Simpson was
down with fever and Macfadyen was in the stokehold. It was a
day of sweltering heat.

The Ilala was backed as far as she was able, and then, dashing
forward at full speed, crashed into the reeds that were taller than
a man and as stout as one's finger. They broke and parted under
the force of the impact, but the mass, accumulating in front, soon
presented an impenetrable barrier. The only thing to do was
to cut a way through. A boat was lowered, and Laws and a crew
attacked the reeds, hacking them with axes and knives, and beating
them down with oar and boat-hook, and so, foot by foot, clearing
a narrow lane. The propeller had also to be freed from the muck
which it had gathered. What with the heat, the stench from the
fetid slime, and the mosquitoes and hippo flies, the Doctor was
well-nigh overcome. On deck, Young was stamping about in a cloud
of mosquitoes, to escape which he finally climbed the mast. When

58 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the task was finished and the Bala glided into the open water of
the Shire the whole party threw themselves down in utter ex-
haustion. " I never," said the Doctor, " spent a day of harder
toil ... a most vicious day."

IV. A Gigantic Zoological Garden

The scenery of the Shire was similar to that of the Zambezi. There
was the same vastness and emptiness of view, the same primeval
loneliness, the same desolate beauty. An occasional hut on stilts,
or a native stealing along in a canoe, or a group of boys surprised
while bathing, their dark bodies scarcely distinguishable against
the mud, only accentuated the impression of solitude and isolation.
Human life seemed so infinitesimal on that great background of
open wilderness and sky.

So, too, with the animal life, abundant though it was, for the
country was a zoological garden on a colossal scale. Hippopotami
crowded the placid backwaters and lagoons, appearing and dis-
appearing, and gambolling as lightly and easily as a brood of wild
duck ; crocodiles swarmed on the sandbanks, slithering quietly
into the river as the sound of the steamer reached them ; large
fish shot up from the water ; crowned cranes, flamingoes, pelicans,
herons, and kingfishers stood unconcernedly as the vessel passed,
or rose heavily and flew off with slow and stately movement ;
flocks of smaller birds, brilliant in colour and swift of wing, flashed
up from the depths of the reeds and jungle and as quickly dis-
appeared. The plains were alive with game ; herds of elephants
and buffalo roamed within vision, wild hog and antelope browsed
in profusion ; at night lions, leopards, and elephants held the
land in possession. Snakes were numerous. One night Dr. Laws
destroyed a large specimen which was crawling into the Ilala
along one of the ropes that fastened the ship to the bank ; another
time he noticed a poisonous species at the feet of his black boy,
and took his knife and killed it.

There was endless interest in the procession of the hours.
With dawn came a mysterious world of floating mist, the vapour
rising from the swamps and swirling and drifting and then vanishing
in the blood-red rays of the sun. Through this fantastic atmosphere
some great bird would flap its solitary way. The bitter coldness
at such a time took the party by surprise. But the days, even
on the moving steamer, were hot and languorous. The river
winding in front now gleamed like polished copper, now shone like

A GIGANTIC ZOOLOGICAL GARDEN 59

silver, now faded to the dullness of lead ; the current ran so swiftly
but so quietly that its movement was only known by the green
sudd gliding past. There was nothing to regard but the sky, at
some part of which would usually be concentrated a thunder-
storm, tremendous in its scope and energy, but appearing in the
immense turquoise expanse like the splutter of a tiny electric
spark. And all through the burning hours prevailed that air of
brooding melancholy, which seemed to be the accumulated heritage
of centuries.

With the fiery declension of the sun came the brief twilight,
when everything grew soft and clear in outline. A tiny black
speck would shoot across the river, — some belated and affrighted
canoeman, — or a naked figure would be silhouetted on the bank
against the afterglow, or a long file of homing cormorants would
fly overhead. It was the weirdest time of the day and it introduced
another element into the impressions imparted by the scenery,
for none could regard that endless waste of dark plain and lagoon
without feeling to a still greater degree not only the loneliness
and desolation of Africa but its sadness.

Night blotted out all save the sky. One stood in a universe
of stars. Above shone the Southern Cross, and below appeared
its reflection in the river. The air was filled with minor noises :
the piping and shrilling of insects, the croaking of frogs, the rush
of wings overhead as of wild-fowl making for the sea, with the
sudden deep growl or roar of wild beasts prowling for prey
about the banks. .

With nothing worse than occasional flounderings on sandbanks
the Ilala reached, on 31st August, the confluence of the Shire
and the Ruo, where Bishop Mackenzie of the Universities Mission
lay buried. There was no trace of the village : with the rapidity
characteristic of Africa the place had lapsed into jungle. In a
wild, solitary, and picturesque spot haunted by hippos and elephants
they found the mound under a tamarind tree, and upon it erected
an iron cross which had been committed to their care by the
Bishop's sister. All were glad to leave a scene which recalled
memories of brave pioneers fighting disaster and succumbing to
fever and death.

On the Elephant Marsh, an extensive plain flooded in the rainy
season, and during the dry a rendezvous of big game, vast herds
of elephants were seen moving with an agility and swiftness which
did not seem out of place in so spacious an environment. Steering
here had to be done cautiously to avoid the hippos. One evening

60 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the steamer ran into one with a violent bump which jerked every
dinner dish to the deck.

V. The Man without Hands

The country began to show signs of habitation. Many huts
lined the banks. As they passed they saw the natives peering
at them suspiciously ; there were mysterious movements and ges-
ticulations, and figures disappeared, running, into the bush behind.
The native pilot said they had reached the territory of the Makololo,
and these were outpost spies or scouts of the Chief. To the Doctor
the name recalled memories of childhood days when he used to
pray to be sent to these people. The Makololo were the carriers
brought by Dr. Livingstone from the interior on his first journey
from west to east. A few elected to remain in the Shire country,
where they became chiefs and welded a heterogeneous host of
slaves, refugees, and free natives into a compact and powerful
tribe. Friendly to the English, they opposed the slave-tainted
Portuguese and refused them passage up-river.

One of the sentinels came to the edge of the bank and shouted.

" What does he say ? " asked Mr. Young of the interpreter.

" He says you must not go farther."

" Tell him I am an Englishman and my name is Young."

" He says he knows you, but all the same you must not proceed
until he informs the Chief."

" What Chief ? "

" Chipatula."

This was a man who had been up at the Lake, and who had
taken the name of a leading chief there.

" Let him tell the Chief I am coming, and that I want wood
and fresh meat."

" Chipatula has already been told. As soon as they saw us
messages were sent off."

Progress became more difficult and tedious : the river was
rapidly falling, and much time was consumed in hauling the vessel
off sandbanks. While engaged in this work a canoe arrived with
a boy, the son of Chipatula, bringing a gift of two goats and a pot
of cow's milk — a special treat to the Europeans. " It means that
we are welcome," said Mr. Young. At sundown they anchored
off a mudbank below the stockaded village of the Chief. A
multitude of men, women, and children stood gazing at them in
silent wonder. Presently their ranks broke, and down the living

THE MAN WITHOUT HANDS 61

lane came a naked native carrying a stool, and following him
Chipatula, lean and ill-favoured, and dressed in European clothes.
Behind marched a file of women bearing pots of pombe\ or beer,
on their heads ; another string with bunches of bananas ; and a
man leading a sheep. Bidding the white men welcome, the Chief
said :

" Dr. Livingstone — is he well ? "

" He is dead."

His face fell ; he was clearly moved by the tidings, and it
was realized again how deep was the impression which the explorer
had made upon the African heart.

" Chief, this steamer has to be carried up past the great falls,
and we want men to do it."

Chipatula looked his astonishment.

" Too heavy," he said, shaking his head.

" You and the other Chiefs bring as many men as you can,
and it will be done."

" I do not believe it, but if you say you will do it you will."

After dark the Doctor went ashore and saw for the first time
savage Africa at its revels. Large fires had been lit, and round
these the natives danced their weird dances, meaningless to the
onlooker, but full of the poetry and passion of life to the excited
participators.

The following days were crowded with vexatious toil : the
steamer was perpetually on sandbanks ; on one occasion all hands
were endeavouring from sunrise to sunset to free her. Chipatula
was on board with Masao, another Makololo chief, a fat, good-
humoured fellow. Both had a turn at the windlass, but were
panting and blowing in a few seconds : they admired, but could
not understand, the white men's vigour. And yet the latter were
sick and suffering, the Doctor himself being ill with dysentery.
At Chibisas, another point associated with the Universities
Mission, a palaver was held with a group of chiefs and the object
of the Expedition explained. Satisfaction was expressed and a
promise made to supply porters. Dr. Laws asked all to send
their children to the Mission to be educated, and they agreed to
do so when the Station was established.

Rocks in the river indicated that the great sand- and mud-
flats of the coast land had been cleared, and that they were ap-
proaching the belt of precipitous hill-country which buttressed
the lofty interior. Down through this wild region for a distance
of seventy miles the water of the Shire surgd its way. In the

62 LAWS OF LIVINGSTON I A

calm of the river at the foot of the cataracts they anchored on the
evening of 6th September. This was Matiti, which the Pioneer
and Lady Nyasa had, in their time, reached. So far, the Expedition
had accomplished nothing new. But what lay ahead ? The
Doctor paid a hasty visit to the lowest fall, over which the water
came tumbling like a Highland torrent. On one of the central
boulders was stretched a large crocodile looking like the guardian
genius of the cataracts ; it lifted its head and gazed insolently
for a moment, as if in challenge, and then slid into the water.
It seemed to typify the resisting power of Africa.

A man of indomitable energy, Mr. Young ordered the dismantling
of the Ilala to proceed at once : to rest or idle was to invite fever.
As the steamer was being taken to pieces a shed was being erected :
merely a rude framework with sails and awnings for sides, but here,
wrote the cheery Doctor, " we were in circumstances of com-
parative comfort." Chipatula and Masao now took their departure,
happy in the possession of two shirts, one snuff-box, two tobacco
pipes, and two tins of gunpowder ; and two new chiefs made their
appearance. One, Ramo-Ku-Kan, claimed to be the paramount
ruler of the region, and, judging from the number of the people
under him, was so : he was a pure Makololo, an oldish one-eyed
man. The other, Milauri, was a young fop decked with bracelets
and beads. They brought, in addition to gifts of provisions, large
gangs of porters, for whom loads were prepared weighing 50 lb.
each. It was arranged to give each man two fathoms of unbleached
calico before starting : another fathom was to be paid on arrival :
rations were to be provided by themselves.

One night while Johnston was entering the shed a figure jumped
out from the bush and held up his arms. Johnston started back,
but in the dim light saw that the arms were without hands and
that the stumps were raw and sore. He took the man into the
shed, where he told a pitiful story. For an offence against one
of the wives of Ramo-Ku-Kan both his hands had been chopped
off. When the Chief heard that the English were coming he feared
what they might say if the man were seen, and he ordered him to
be summarily disposed of. Thrown into the river, he managed to
keep afloat and eventually escaped into the bush. He was fed
and placed in a dark corner of the shed and screened off to prevent
him being seen by a chief and two of his wives who were being
housed for the night. In the morning he was sent off secretly
with instructions to make for the top of the cataracts and await
the Expedition. Trying to swim across the river with his handless

THE CATARACTS MAKCH 63

arms he was either drowned or seized by a crocodile, for he was
never seen to reach the opposite bank.

Such an incident roused the compassion of the Doctor, and he
longed to begin his work of evangelizing the natives. Unpacking
his magic-lantern he exhibited to the chiefs and their followers
some of the slides, beginning with the animals with which they
were familiar. These provoked their astonishment, each picture
being received with cries of wonder. Then he told them of God
and Jesus and the Divine love for men. It was a very primitive
Gospel meeting, but it gave him more satisfaction than all his
other work.

VI. The Cataracts March

On Sunday, 12th September, the first hundred carriers were
dispatched with the keel and plates and one of the boilers — the
latter fixed on an axle and a couple of wheels — and next day two
hundred left with further loads. Johnston, Macfadyen, and
Simpson accompanied this party in order that the work of recon-
structing the steamer at the head of the cataracts might begin
at once. It was not until the 18th that sufficient porters — two
hundred in number — were got together to convey the remaining
packages. The second boiler, — which, as anticipated, was not
required, — the two large boats, and all the goods not immediately
required, were placed meantime in the care of Ramo-Ku-Kan,
and Riddel and Baker, with Fred as interpreter, were left to await
the arrival of the hired canoes with the other stores. Mr. Young
walked in front of the last gang ; at the rear came the dinghy,
carried on the shoulders of several men, two bleating sheep and a
goat, and then the Doctor last, as a kind of whipper-in.

No road existed along the side of the cataracts : a native path,
a few feet wide, disappeared a short distance ahead, and the rest
of the journey was over trackless ground. The men marched in
single file, twisting and climbing through bush and marsh and
stream and over burning sand and rock. While the day was still
young a dead eland, which, drifting down the river, had been
caught on some rocks, was observed. Judging from the smell
it was in an advanced stage of decomposition, but the temptation
was too strong to be resisted. Three of the men swam out to the
carcase, which was dragged to the bank and cut up. Fires were
lit, strips of the flesh were suspended to half-roast and dry in the
smoke, and the rest was cooked — at some distance from the
fastidious Europeans. No further progress was made that day.

64 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

As the Expedition carried no tents a grass shelter was erected for
Mr. Young and the Doctor.

Next day they entered a wild and desolate tract, where the
precipitous cliffs reminded the Doctor of the scenery on the east
coast of Scotland. The river flowed in deep gorges that were in
some parts only thirty feet wide and at intervals descended in
picturesque waterfalls. Up and down the gullies they scrambled,
often going on hands and feet and holding on by stones and roots
and branches of trees. So hot were the bare rocks that the natives
complained of sore feet, a rare occurrence with these sturdy
travellers. Even the Doctor, in spite of wearing thick boots
and socks, felt as if he were treading on burning bricks. There
were moments of peril when their hearts quailed at the task before
them : when, for instance, they crept along the sides of precipices
where there was only a foot or two's breadth of sloping path and,
below, a sheer descent of 200 feet to the roaring torrent. How
the first party with the dismembered Ilala had contrived to
negotiate the formidable obstacles the Doctor was at a loss to
tell ; when he saw the marks showing where the wheels had been
dragged he wondered if any part at all had survived the rough
experience. His admiration for the natives had been steadily
rising, and this journey increased it tenfold. "I do like these
natives," he wrote. " Friendly, faithful fellows, they nearly all
are ready at any time to do anything for the comfort of their
master."

Worn out with their toil they camped that night above the
falls of Patamanga. A grass booth was erected beneath the trees,
and when the Doctor had recovered he brought the men together,
and round the camp fire, with the river running swiftly by, the sky
sparkling with stars and only the grunting of the hippos disturbing
the stillness, he sat and taught them, after the manner of Christ,
in parable. He spoke of a great good Chief and of a tribe who
were rebellious and how He dealt with them, kindly but firmly ;
and dimly they understood the higher application. The moon
rose and, shedding its lambent light on the scene, illuminated
the circle of dark, earnest faces, and the Doctor was thrilled with
a sense of the strangeness and fascination of it all. The mystery
of the land, the need of these forlorn people, the vast possibilities
of the future, moved him as he had not been moved before. Love
of the service he had entered seized him like a passion. The spell
of Africa gripped him never to let him go.

The going continued so difficult and hazardous that frequent

The Cape Maclear Cottages, including the Double-Decker

Lake Nyasa: The faint, cloud-like appearance along the horizon
is the "Kungo Mist" (p. 78)

Lake Dwellings seen by Dr. Laws

Mloi.o and his Boy

William Koyi

-

Albert Namalambe

The first convert in the

Livingstonia Mission

An Original Ngoni who

crossed the zambezi a

Professing Christian

THE CATARACTS MARCH 65

halts had to be made to send back assistance to the stragglers
and allow them to come up. At one point the path lay along the
slippery tail of a crag, across which they had to crawl on all-fours.
Beyond this they came upon the earlier gang, fatigued and famish-
ing, but still cheerful. Only once had the axle upset, but all the
damage was a slight dent on the flange of the boiler. By moon-
light on the morning of Wednesday, 22nd September, the whole
cavalcade was off on its last stage, and at noon, footsore and weary,
reached the head of the cataracts. Macfadyen and Simpson were
found to be down with fever, Henderson was scarcely able to
walk, while Johnston moved about as pale as a ghost. The spot
was a horrid marsh, steamy and pestilential, with mosquitoes in
millions. But the shed had been erected and the keel laid, and it
was decided to remain and hasten the rebuilding of the steamer
rather than move to another site.

After attending to the sick the Doctor paid off the carriers,
faithful men all, who had been unconsciously assisting to introduce
the forces that were to redeem their land. They had toiled desper-
ately over those seventy miles of execrable country; not one had
deserted, as they might easily have done; every article had been
delivered safe and unbroken; and for this priceless service they
each received six yards of cloth valued at 3s. and were content, and
eager, even, to remain with the Expedition.

On this occasion the Ilala was rebuilt by the white men. Laws
and Johnston started the work — " It had to be done," said the
Doctor simply, " and we did it." That hour or two spent at Mil-
wall Docks now proved of use. The frames were fixed up per-
manently and the bolts screwed in and riveted. Young was unable
to assist: it was not in his line of service. " I cannot build the
Ilala," he said, " but I will wash your clothes," and he sat under a
tree and scoured whilst the others screwed and hammered. By
and by Macfadyen and Simpson, though weak, were able to take
a share in the work. To save time only the plates below the water-
line were riveted.

Intense heat, cold winds, thunderstorms, hailstorms, and rain-
storms all did their worst while the shipbuilding and engineering
and painting went on. The trying conditions reacted on the
spirits of the less disciplined men, and Lorenzo in a fit of temper
deserted and took the road back to the Makololo. When he fell
in with Baker and Riddel with 168 men coming on with the rest
of the stores he was in a pitiable plight and was glad to return
to duty. Baker had been ill with fever, and he collapsed on arrival.
5

66 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

VII. Two Sinister Figures

On Wednesday, 6th October, after infinite trouble, the Ilala
was launched; as she struck the water Mr. Young exclaimed,
" God speed her." " Amen," added the Doctor, and the natives
broke into a dance. After taking in the cargo and a load of lignum-
vitae — reckoned next to coal as a fuel — a start was made up-river.
But the boiler worked badly; the steam went rapidly down, and
repeated stoppages had to be made to work it up. With feverish
energy the engineers wrought at the engine and boiler, and at dawn
next morning a fresh attempt was made. All went well: the
boiler kept up an average pressure of 50 lb. per square inch, and
the craft went spinning up the river at seven knots, the first screw-
steamer to navigate the Upper Shire.

They were now on the first plateau of Central Africa, amidst
mountainous scenery, the Ilala a mere speck in comparison with
the natural features as it wound its way along the river on the
levels. Large herds of elephant were seen and enormous numbers
of antelope, as many as five hundred of the latter appearing at
a time close to the steamer. They stood and gazed at the strange
apparition, unconscious of danger, and even when fired at did not
stir. Not until numerous shots were discharged did they realize
that an enemy was doing this thing, and then they galloped off
over the plain.

Lake Pamalombe was reached on Sunday; it was a shallow
expansion of the river at the foot of the Zombe Hills, fast drying
up, and edged with a wide belt of reed, so that it was not possible
to anchor near the villages which were seen on the banks. Natives
who were fishing swam out to look at the " fire-canoe " but would
not venture near or respond to the overtures of those on board.
" Where is the mouth of the river ? " was shouted, and they
pointed to the north. Steaming through a school of hippos, one
of which was struck by the screw as it dived, the passage with its
sluggish current was at last discovered, and the vessel was soon
abreast a large village, opposite which it anchored. This was the
headquarters of Mponda, one of the most powerful chiefs in the
Nyasa regi'on, whose friendly relations with Dr. Livingstone had
made him well known. The territory which he controlled extended
to Lake Nyasa, and included the whole peninsula of Cape Maclear,
and a section of the western shore; and it was, therefore, necessary
for the Expedition to win his interest and protection.

DAWN ON LAKE NYASA 67

Mr. Young and the Doctor landed and were received by the
Chief under the wide eaves of his square-built house. Beside
him stood two white-robed figures, the most sinister they had yet
seen, Arabs, with gun and sword, members of a slave-dealing
gang. Suspicion, mingled with fear, sat on their faces. Grouped
about a hut in front some forty of the Chief's wives, kneeling,
looked on; while pressing in on every side was a multitude of
curious spectators. Amongst these Sam detected a face he knew,
that of Wakotani, a native with a chequered history. Rescued
from slavery by Bishop Mackenzie's party he was handed over to
Dr. Livingstone and taken to Bombay, where he was educated and
baptized into the Christian faith. He returned with the explorer,
and finally settled at Mponda's, where he became a polygamist,
one of his wives being a sister of the Chief.

Mponda welcomed the white men by shaking hands; then,
taking a gourd of pombe from one of his wives, he drank liberally,
two other wives the while gently kneading and rubbing his body
to shake the liquor well down and make room for more. The
gourd was passed to the Doctor, who handed it first to Mr. Young
as the chief of the Expedition. As the latter raised the great bowl
to his lips he felt the hands of the women beginning the process of
massaging his stomach, a proceeding which the scandalized sailor
soon cut short. The gift of a goat completed the ceremony. Then
business was talked.

" We want to be your friends," the Chief was told. " You were
kind to Dr. Livingstone, and that has been appreciated by the
English nation. It is a link binding you to them. We have come
to teach you Africans about God and instruct you in the arts of
civilized life. We want to settle if possible on your territory up
at the point where the rocks dip into the lake, and we wish you to
grant us a piece of land for our houses and gardens."

" It is well," was the reply. " You may choose for yourselves
and you may take Wakotani -with you as a guide."

The bargain was closed by the gift of a gun, a blanket, a quilt,
two shirts, a tin of gunpowder, and a dozen gun flints.

" Come on board in the morning," said Mr. Young on parting,
" and you will see the wonders of our big canoe."

VIII. Dawn on Lake Nyasa

In the twilight of the dawn the staff were groping for their
clothes; they had long been awake and were impatient to be astir.

68 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Steam was up at the first gleam of light. Sunrise in the tropics
comes with wonderful quietude and peace; the land in its freshness
and purity looks like a child awakening from sleep. But it was
not the beauty of the morning that thrilled the white men and filled
them with exhilaration. Their thoughts went leaping forward,
for this was the day when their hopes would be realized and they
would see the great inland sea of their dreams.

They foundj the temperature at Mponda's distinctly cooler.
The Chief, they were informed, was " sick " and did not wish to
see the steamer. It appeared that the Arabs had been poisoning
his mind: the English, they whispered, were going to put an evil
spirit into him and were planning to steal his territory.

" He sees us, no doubt," was Mr. Young's comment. " We
will show him and his Arab friends what the Ilala can do."

With the highest pressure of steam on, the steamer sped up and
down the river in front of the village, twisting, backing, circling,
vibrating with energy like a living thing. At the foremast flew
the Doctor's blue flag, and on the mainmast the British ensign
which had been on the Search. Then with a prolonged whistle,
as of defiance, the Ilala turned and headed for the Lake. Passing
the northern end of the long-drawn-out village where three or
four thousand people lined the bank, two slaves were seen standing
with the yoke-stick on their necks and their hands tied behind
them. " It was a sight," said the Doctor, " which made my blood
boil within me."

At half-past six they came to Lake Nyasa. They were steaming
along a reach of tranquil water fringed by green reeds and grass;
around stretched a level, sandy plain, dotted with borassus palms.
The Doctor was standing at the bows, his hand grasping the
stanchion which supported the awning. Through the palm stems
he caught a sudden gleam and there opened up before him a vast
expanse of water, grey and cool, with a horizon of hills on either
side and a few small islands in the distance. The atmosphere
seemed fresher and purer. As the Ilala glided out of the river
the sun rose above the eastern range, burnishing the Lake with gold
and flushing into vivid beauty the clouds along the western sky.
Was it a wonder that all regarded that flood of colour as a symbol
of what they hoped and prayed the Expedition might be — the
advent of the Divine Light into the dark regions of Central
Africa ?

The engines were stopped, steam was shut off, and in the
well-deck aft, under the awning, the little company gathered for

DAWN ON LAKE NYASA 69

thanksgiving. " Let us," said the Doctor, " sing the Hundredth
Psalm " :

"All people that on earth do dwell,

Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice.

Him serve with mirth, His praise forth tell,

Come ye before Him and rejoice.

O enter then His gates with praise,
Approach with joy His courts unto:
Praise, laud, and bless His name always,
For it is seemly so to do.

For why ? the Lord our God is good,
His mercy is for ever sure;
His truth at all times firmly stood,
And shall from age to age endure."

Seldom have the words been sung in such moving circumstances:
they seemed to the little company to have acquired a new beauty
and depth of meaning. As the solemn melody floated over the
Lake the feeling in each heart was one of gratitude for the sure
mercies that had encompassed them throughout all their perilous
days and nights. Yet even as they gave thanks they were con-
scious of the magnitude of the task which still lay before them.

The service ended, the Ilala was turned towards the west;
there was no more fear of sandbanks, and Mr. Young felt a sailor's
joy in plunging through deep, clear blue water. The journey from
the coast had visably aged him: his hair had turned grey, but his
task was successfully accomplished; he had placed the first steamer
on Lake Nyasa, and had now only to discover a site on which to land
the Mission party. What he proceeded to look for was a good
harbour providing safe refuge from the prevailing winds. All
other considerations were subordinated to this requirement, for the
Ilala was to be the link between the Mission and the outer world:
it was the symbol of their superiority, and it would be their means
of escape in the event of a collision with hostile Arabs or natives.
There must also be a fair amount of good soil and an abundant
supply of wood: water was not so essential, as the Lake was fresh.
It was important, likewise, to be out of the direct routes of the
slavers and yet sufficiently near to keep an eye on their movements.

They skirted the east side of the peninsula, examining the inlets
and bays; near the Cape they discovered a tremendous cleft which
split the promontory in two and made the rocky bluff at the head
an island. The steamer was turned cautiously into the narrow
passage and, moving slowly between the crags, it glided into a

70 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

scene of surpassing beauty on the western side. The range of hills
which formed the backbone of the peninsula, receding southward,
swept round in a great semicircle of irregular heights wooded to the
summit but mottled with the red surfaces of protruding granite.
Between these and the shore extended an immense plain covered
with tall grass and trees and presenting the appearance of an
English park. The waves lapped a beach of yellow granitic sand
which sloped up 25 feet to a gravel ridge. A short distance to
the south the view was closed by the hills descending abruptly
into the Lake. An island, a mass of rock and low bush, about
four miles long, lay to the right and others more distantly. So
sheltered was the bay that its surface was as motionless as a mirror.
No sign of life was detected save some movement of game on the
plain, the stealthy plunge of a crocodile at the point, and the flight
of a fish eagle overhead. In the drowsy stillness the only sound that
came to their ears was the barking of the baboons high up amongst
the crags. When at sunset the colours passed from crimson to
violet and purple, and then when the moon rose and idealized the
features of the scene, it became almost unearthly in its wistful
loveliness.

IX. Boarding a Dhow

The cruise was continued next morning in the western waters of
the peninsula. A vast belt of swamp fringed the coast-line, the
home of myriads of mosquitoes which proved so irritating close
inshore that the vessel continued to steam by moonlight. Opposite
the village of a chief called Mpemba she was anchored for the night.
In the morning the beach was dark with natives gazing in wonder
at the craft which glided through the water without paddles and
emitted fiery sparks. A sudden gale prevented a landing and they
proceeded north.

" A slaver ! "

The exclamation sent all to starboard, where they saw an Arab
dhow running under full sail. For a moment Mr. Young gazed
uncertainly, and then cried, " Chase her ! " On went his uniform
cap and up went the British ensign. The thought in the minds
of the staff was, " What if there are slaves on board ? " Their
instructions were explicit. " Active interference by force initiated
on your side is in no case and on no account to be resorted to."
The sentence flashed into Mr. Young's recollection. He was
standing at the bow, glasses in hand. Turning to the Doctor beside

BOARDING A DHOW 7*

him, he said, " I'll give you two minutes to decide whether we
shall fight or not. . . . Are you going to fight or not ? "

"You are in command: whatever you order me to do I will
do," replied the Doctor.

" Good. . . . Johnston, will you fight? "

" I will, sir."

To the Doctor: " Load your revolver and come into the boat.
Baker, take the wheel and stand across her bows."

Observing the British flag the dhow lowered her immense sail
and lay to. Mr. Young and Dr. Laws jumped into the dinghy.

" Me not got slaves in," came in accents of terror across the water.

" I did not say you had," shouted Young, " but I want to have
a look at you."

Boarding the vessel, which was about fifteen tons burden, they
found that the large open slave-hold was empty, and breathed a
sigh of relief. The master, Mahomet, an Arab, and the crew,
consisting of four other Arabs and four natives, were in an abject
state of astonishment and alarm. This sudden apparition of a
swift steamer, flying the British flag in command of a man with a
naval cap in haunts that had long been their exclusive preserve
struck them with dread. They expected to be taken prisoners and
punished. In his confusion, Mahomet mumbled out any English
phrases that came to him:

" Yes, yes, me sabe English. Me no take slaves. Good
evening. Thank you, sir, Massa."

" You know English ? "

" Yes, yes ; me come from Zanzibar."

" All right," said Mr. Young; " you are free to go."

" This shows," he added to the Doctor, " how correct Living-
stone was in his idea that a steamer on the Lake would put the
fear of death into these villains and break up their horrid traffic."

When they returned, Johnston, who had been watching the
scene, remarked, " That Arab was never so near to being a white
man in his life ! "

To increase the moral effect of the demonstration the Ilala was
sent circling full speed several times round the dhow before bearing
away again for the western shore.

Coasting northwards many villages were passed, but all empty
and desolate, with elephants roaming amongst the ruins; the entire
Lake side seemed to have been depopulated by the slavers.

Crossing to the east they arrived at a point hitherto unreached
by white men. After sighting a river called Chilowera they turned

72 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

south, searching for a settlement which Young had visited on his
previous expedition, but found only a mass of sodden wreckage
with one woman, the wife of a fisherman, in a wretched shelter.
All along the shore it was the same, rotting huts and deserted
gardens, until, by moonlight, they anchored off a small village,
which proved to be the port the dhow belonged to; it was dis-
covered hidden among the reeds.

Here a consultation was held. No spot at the lower end of the
Lake which they had inspected seemed suitable for a mission settle-
ment. Young spoke as a sailor. " I have seen no better harbour
yet than Cape Maclear. It is sheltered, the bay being calm when
the Lake outside is rough; it is protected from the south by the
hills and from the north by the island, and it is on Mponda's terri-
tory. The only objection is the absence of villages in the vicinity."

" As to that," said Laws, " I have seen no village site which is
not pitched beside a marsh where it would be utter folly to settle.
The people will come to us and we have the steamer to go to them."

The matter was fully discussed, and finally it was decided to fix,
meantime, on the Cape. On Sunday, 17th October, the Ilala
shaped its course south, and after a stormy passage reached the
shelter of the bay in the evening.

" Livingstonia," wrote the Doctor, " is begun — though at
present a piece of canvas stretched between two trees is all that
stands for the future city of that name."

Letters were dispatched to Scotland and to Dr. Stewart, who
was gratified with the precision, rapidity, and success of the
Expedition. " But," said he, " I have never known a mission
prayed for as this has been."

Among the trees and rocks on the hillside, unseen, the baboons
looked down on this invasion of their solitude and filled the air
with what sounded like harsh and ironical laughter. Had humans
not come and gone throughout all the years — come and built
huts and planted gardens that were good to ravage — and then
vanished ? These white humans, for all their pride and assurance,
they also would, in their turn, go.

X. An Experimental Station

The site chosen for the station was a tentative one: there
was no idea of making it the permanent headquarters of the Mission.
Young fully expected that after further exploration of the Lake

AN EXPERIMENTAL STATION 73

it would be deemed expedient to remove to some other locality,
and Laws in his first letter home indicated the temporary character
of the arrangement. " The station," he wrote, " may not be on this
particular spot or on any within thirty miles of it, but till the rainy
season is over this is fixed on as our place of abode."

Whether or not there was to be any change the Doctor was
determined to erect the very best type of buildings; his early
training, his honesty of craftsmanship, his sense of thoroughness,
would not have it otherwise. Had he seen into the future he
might have constructed them of more flimsy material. In due
season the site was relinquished for a better, but the buildings
remained and misled many a traveller, who drew melancholy
pictures of the abandoned work. In 1920 the ruined walls
were still standing after a lapse of forty-five years, a remarkable
witness, in the tropics, to the efficiency of Scottish workmanship.

The Doctor, who planned the station, laid out the grounds and
walks in the shape of a gigantic Union Jack, parallel to the Lake,
the buildings being ranged along the top line about a hundred yards
from the beach. It was necessary to hasten the work as the early
rains were due, but no native labour was available, and Mr. Young
returned in the Ilala to the Shire to bring up the remainder of
the stores and engage men at Mponda's. Meantime the Doctor
organized a working party comprising himself, Mr. Henderson,
Riddel, and Johnston, with Fred and Jack, and started clearing the
site. Two hundred trees were felled the first day, and then the
construction began of a bungalow 50 feet by 25 feet. The party
lived in a tent made out of awnings. They rose by candlelight at
5 a.m., drank a cup of sugarless coffee, and began work in the
cool of the dawn. At seven the gong — an axle suspended from a
tree — called them to breakfast, which usually consisted of fried fowl,
ground Indian corn made into porridge, and coffee or tea. After
worship, work was resumed at eight. Dinner came at midday —
soup, fowl, goat or buck, sweet potatoes, and rice. Throughout
the scorching hours of the afternoon the work continued: at sun-
set came tea with meat, if there was any. Sometimes as a luxury
a tin of salt meat or pork was opened, but it was deemed wise to be
sparing of the home stores in case of emergency. The Doctor,
" thinking ahead," deliberately accustomed himself to native diet:
there might come occasions when nothing else could be obtained.
In the evening, when the atmosphere had cooled, writing, washing,
and mending by candlelight filled in the time until bedtime.

74 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

The dread of being overtaken by the rains urged the party to
incessant exertion: work even went on for a time on Sundays.
The strain was severe; they were toiling in terrific heat, the ther-
mometer registering at noon from 92 to 99 degrees in the shade,
while in the sun the mercury went up as far as the instrument
measured. Never before had St. John's picture in Revelation
of a heaven where neither the sun would shine on them nor any
heat, and where they would hunger and thirst no more, appealed
to them with such force. Laws drudged with the rest, felling trees,
digging holes, thatching, claying, planting, washing clothes — not
always his own — and looking after the sick the while. He told
his home people that he was becoming " a surly-looking customer,
stalking about in shirt and trousers, often with a face blackened
by the burned grass and wood, and with hands hard and horny."
He made the best of everything and was always cheerful and
content.

The news of the arrival of the Expedition spread far and wide,
and curious natives appeared in canoes, observing the activity at
the station from a distance, but fleeing at the least movement
towards them. It was afterwards learned that they thought the
Azungu, the white men, were spirits who had become incarnate.
At the point where the spur from the hills dipped into the Lake —
called Otter Point from the number of otters seen about it — a large
rock rose out of the water which the natives considered to be the
abode of spirits. To propitiate these when passing in their canoes
they were accustomed to scatter some flour on the water, believing
that if they did not do so they would be upset and drowned. It
was out of this rock they imagined the white men had come.

One, at last, bolder than the rest, responded to the advances
made, and sold his catch of fish. Others, told that the spirits had
stomachs, followed with beans, rice, mapira, and fowls, and soon the
friendliest relations were established, and several were induced to
remain and work for wages of calico. This was fortunate, for the
Ilala returned without a single native1 — Mponda, though secretly
well disposed to the Mission, being still under the influence of the
Arabs, and refusing to supply men. One day six half-castes, with
an Arab look about them, appeared and requested work and were
engaged. Their talk and behaviour, however, roused suspicion,
and on being closely questioned it became evident that they were
spies of the slave-traders; when denounced they made off swiftly
into the bush.

On 9th November a thunderstorm gave warning that the

A VOYAGE OF EXPLORATION 75

rains were imminent, and a move was made from the tent into the
large building, which had a thatched roof, clay floor, and door and
window spaces that were closed at night with bamboo mats. On
the outside walls was a coating of whitewash made from snail-
shells that had been gathered and burnt. The stores were piled up
at one end; the middle was reserved for dining, and the other end
was the sleeping quarters for all except Mr. Young, who remained
on the Ilala.

Sunday, 14th November, was the first day of rest which the
staff had enjoyed since entering Africa. In the forenoon the Doctor
gathered the natives round him, explained the purpose of the
Mission, and showed them Bible pictures, seeking through an
interpreter to convey to them some idea of the truths which these
represented. They could not see the figures at first, but only a
mass of black and white marks.

XI. A Voyage of Exploration

Having now a roof over their heads, with shelter for the stores,
the pioneers turned their thoughts towards the Lake stretching
away before them into the unknown. Before settling down they
must ascertain what the conditions were at the upper end which had
never yet been reached. The question of a permanent site was
still undetermined; a location had to be fixed for the Church of
Scotland enterprise, and it was necessary to cultivate friendly
relations with the chiefs who were in power along the shore. A
voyage of exploration was therefore decided on. The party con-
sisted of Mr. Young as navigating officer, Dr. Laws in his usual
capacity as scientific observer and general assistant, Mr. Hender-
son as prospector for a site for the sister mission, Macfadyen as
engineer, Baker as seaman, Sam as interpreter, and Joe as odd man.
The others, with Johnston in charge, were left to continue building
operations.

A preliminary run across to Mpemba's was made in order to
discover definitely whether he was friendly or hostile; but he was
not to be seen, and his people refused to sell provisions. It was not
pleasant to leave the station with such an uncertain neighbour on
its flank, but the risk was taken and the Ilala left on 19th November
for the first cruise made by white men round the Lake.

Steaming through sky-blue water they hugged the eastern
coast, sounding cautiously as they went on account of the treacherous
rocks that ever and again ran athwart their course. On the whole,

76 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

however, the inshore was deep and in some places unfathomable
with the line; often an anchorage was not found until within
50 yards of the beach. The coast was one long series of lovely
half-moon bays divided by bold promontories and backed by high
hills, with here and there a river flowing sluggishly through an
expanse of reed and grass. At the lower end the people spoke
Yao and were friendly, and their Chief was made happy by a trip
in the Ilala and the gift of a pipe and soap-box. Farther north
the villages were entrenched and stockaded, and the Chief lived on
the top of a mountain amongst the clouds.

Losewa was found to be the principal slave and ivory depot
on the east, opposite Kota Kota, of evil reputation, on the west.
Across the sunlit ferry ran a fleet of dhows, carrying every year,
according to the Arabs themselves, ten thousand slaves collected
by cunning and violence from the vast spaces of the interior to
supply the markets of Kilwa and Zanzibar. Losewa was populous,
filthy, and stocked with calico, beads, and other barter goods. The
bay was alive with dhows, and on the plains behind many herds of
cattle were seen. The Arabs were intelligent — one had served on
board a British man-of-war — but their geographical knowledge
was singularly limited; they were unaware that water communica-
tion existed between the foot of the Lake and the ocean.

Evincing a nervous anxiety as to the significance of the white
man's appearance, they made efforts to discover the character of
the Ilala's armament, but were kept at a distance. A gale springing
up from the south, the steamer ran before it for thirteen hours,
and there was no sleep for anyone that night. Shelter was found
in a bay, opposite which, four miles out, lay a large island called by
the natives Likomo. It seemed a beautiful spot, with good harbour
and creeks, and a considerable population, and a later visit to it
was planned. On the mainland the natives were found very
scantily attired. Lip peleles in the shape of a cup made of ivory,
tin, or quartz were common among the women, along with a star-
like peg in the nose.

" Where is your Chief ? " asked the Doctor.

" He is sick," was the reply.

" Then," said he, " I will come and give him medicine."

" He is not here," they hastened to assure him.

" Then I will go to him."

" He is far away in the bush."

The Doctor looked round, feeling sure that the man was watch-
ing him.

A VOYAGE OF EXPLORATION 77

From this point onward the coast had been swept by war
parties from the hills, and only ruined huts, sodden gardens, and
a multitude of skeletons bleaching in the sun were seen, with fat
crocodiles and hippos wallowing among the marshes. When na-
tives Were again glimpsed, Dr. Laws landed and found them
dwelling amongst the rocks along the shore and on the Lake, their
huts crowning the boulders and wedged into crevices, the gardens
mere pockets of earth protected from the waves by walls of stone.
Still farther north there were villages on wooden piles out in the
Lake, the flooring about eight feet above the water. As soon as the
steamer was sighted the natives in terror scrambled down from
the low, beehive huts into canoes and fled.

A sudden squall arose and the Ilala made for open water. In
a few minutes the scene changed to one of wild confusion, and
throughout the night the vessel laboured, rain, lightning, and
thunder adding to the turmoil. The morning came crystal-clear,
revealing a range of mountains to the north-east, the loftiest yet
seen. As the steamer drew into their shadow the scenery took on
a new aspect of grandeur. The cliffs emerged sheer from the Lake,
rose into precipitous heights, which pierced cloudland, and sent
their rugged granite peaks into the dazzling radiance of the sky.
Far up, unheard, streams and waterfalls hung like strands of white
silk without apparent movement. This, doubtless, was the line
of high hills which Dr. Livingstone had seen when he reached
his farthest north,, and in his honour Dr. Laws called them the
Livingstone Range.

On Sunday, 28th November, the head of the Lake was reached
in Lat. 9 deg. 20 min. south, showing that it was of greater
extent than Dr. Livingstone had supposed. Here again was an
entire change in the character of the scenery. Shallow water
prevented a near approach to the land, which stretched as a marshy
plain as far as the eye could see; like the southern end it had
evidently formed an extension of the bed of the Lake at some former
period. A solitary fisher in his canoe was surprised by the rapid
approach of the steamer and paddled away as for dear life. A
river was detected, but whether flowing in or out was uncertain, and
before the problem, the same which had puzzled Dr. Livingstone,
could be solved the steamer had to make its escape from the
shallows.

Another rush of wind, lifting the water before it, burst upon them,
and by evening a hurricane was blowing and the vessel, now light
in ballast, was being pitched hither and thither like a cork upon the

78 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

waves. " It was a night," says Dr. Laws, " which was not readily
forgotten. The howling wind, the rain pouring in torrents, the
roar of the breakers on the beach, the terrific thud of the waves
as they struck against the bows of our little vessel, the whirring
of the screw out of the water, the intense darkness broken by
vivid flashes of blue and pink lightning, revealing for a moment
the majestic grandeur of the scene and then leaving us in blacker
darkness than before, the crash of thunder overhead — all made us
realize the awful sublimity of a tropical storm."

Two anchors were laid out and the engines kept slowly revolving
to relieve the strain on the cables. Only a small quantity of fuel
was left; they were on a lee shore, and if the vessel broke adrift . . .

" All hands stand ready to jump overboard," was the order from
Mr. Young.

Fortunately the wind veered to the north and the waves abated.
In the lull the boat was run ashore and a large quantity of sand was
taken aboard as ballast. On all that dismal coast no wood was
discerned, nor was there shelter of any kind. Again the wind shifted
to the south, and throughout the night the tiny steamer was
engaging the storm to the accompaniment of thunder, lightning,
and rain. By this time everything on board — bunks, clothes, stores,
food — was saturated and sodden.

For two days a foul wind impeded progress south along the
inhospitable coast, but on the next a landing was effected amongst
granite rocks and some firewood picked up. Then came a sweeter
region, with sunny bays and headlands and game browsing on the
plains, but with a wretched population, practically naked, and sub-
sisting chiefly on small fish. These natives declared that the
river which had been seen at the north end was the Rovuma, and
that it flowed out of the Lake. This was Mr. Young's opinion, but
the Doctor held to the view that it was not the Rovuma and that
it flowed into the Lake. Here Macfadyen was seized with fever,
and the Doctor and Henderson took his place in the stokehold.
" Kungo mist " now began to be encountered. Irregular masses
and columns of brown clouds appeared on the horizon, advancing
like a fleet of sailing-ships, and moved rapidly above the surface of
the Lake; when one was encountered the tiny insects of which
it was composed dashed against those on the steamer with con-
siderable force; it was as if they had met a shower of hail.

The land had become more mountainous, and they arrived at a
wide bay — named Florence Bay, after Dr. Stewart's daughter —
which was flanked on the south by a massive, square-shaped bluff,

A VOYAGE OF EXPLORATION 79

looking, the Doctor thought, " like a grand old fortress." It was
formed of strata of red sandstone dipping at a slight angle inland.
The top seemed bare, the lower slopes were clothed with trees and
tangled undergrowth, and the base plunged straight into the Lake.
The Doctor was much impressed by this great natural feature
and named it Mt. Waller, after the Editor of Livingstone's Last
Journals. Behind towered hills, rising as high as 6000 feet. . . .
It was up amongst these cloud-wreathed heights that the Doctor
was, in due time, to establish the Central Station of Livingstonia.

Continuing south they came across a more manly and inde-
pendent type of native, armed with spears and bows and arrows,
who proved friendly and provided them with wood, though they
could not understand the rapacity of a fire which demanded such
enormous quantities of fuel. Their Chief, Mankambira, had seen
Dr. Livingstone, whilst his father, who lived some miles to the south,
had entertained and helped the explorer. Invited on board, he
insisted that Dr. Laws should be retained by his warriors as a
hostage to ensure his safety. The Doctor willingly agreed, and
was treated with all courtesy. A run was made across the Lake
to the island of Chisamooloo, contiguous to Likomo, where the
people were living amongst the rocks, the only trees visible being
gigantic baobabs. Next day the course was set for Kota Kota.
Henderson collapsed with fever, and the Doctor worked alone at
the engine and furnace. By evening a furious tempest was raging.
They were in the middle of the Lake with rain falling in sheets, a
heavy sea running-, and the wind blowing in fierce gusts. The
ship pitched and rolled, and it was well-nigh impossible to keep
one's feet. It was hopeless to continue, and, turning, the steamer
ran before the storm and finally reached the shelter of Likomo.
Another attempt was made on the following day, but the conditions
were even worse; the steamer was menaced also by waterspouts,
and had to be steered in and out of the columns of water; and it
was two days later ere Kota Kota was reached.

This Arab town, the largest slave depot in Central Africa, with
a mixed population of ten thousand, lay at the head of a wide bay,
protected from the south winds by a neck of sand and reed. The
huts were grouped in a great grey cluster on the rising beach;
behind, the country extended fiat and featureless to the distant
line of hills. Two dhows were seen; another had sailed across
the Lake that morning, packed with slaves. The Arabs who
thronged the beach stated that Jumbe, their Chief, was sick and
" from home," but he " arrived " in the afternoon and was willing

80 LAWS OF LIVIXGSTONIA

to receive the visitors. Taking Sam with him as interpreter, the
Doctor landed and was ceremoniously welcomed in an inner chamber
of the Chief's hut. Jumbe, who was a coastman, seemed about
forty years of age and was wasted by disease.

" What do you want to do with my dhows ? " was his first
question.

" That is a question for Mr. Young," said the Doctor diplo-
matically.

" Am I not to trade in slaves ? " he demanded.

" Why do you deal in slaves when you can engage in lawful
commerce ? " was the rejoinder.

" Will you let me carry ivory if I drop the slaves ? "

" Certainly."

" Will you stay a month and cure me ? "

The Doctor could not promise this, but gave him a supply of
medicine.

Two days later in the far distance the bold headland of Cape
Maclear came into view silhouetted against the yellow light of
evening, and in the hope of reaching it in the morning all hands
were kept throughout the night sawing wood and feeding the
furnace, but a gale arose and kept them tacking and tumbling about
all day. With desperate energy the fire was fed and, in the evening,
the steamer weathered the Cape and slid into the calm water of
the bay. The sa wing-block was pitched overboard; there was no
more wood left to saw. On the beach stood three pale and gaunt
men, and when the Doctor landed it was to listen to a tale of fever,
dysentery, and suffering.

Hasty as the cruise had been it had not been unprofitable. It
had been ascertained that the Lake, instead of being only 200 miles
long, as estimated by Dr. Livingstone, was actually 360 miles,
and varied from 15 to 50 miles in breadth, so that, as the Doctor
said, " it could be stowed away in Scotland." It was also learnt
that, at this season at any rate, it was subject to sudden and violent
squalls which made navigation difficult and perilous, and that a
stout sea-boat was needed to withstand the heavy buffeting en-
countered. Fortunately the Ilala had shown herself a staunch
craft, exhibiting remarkable sailing qualities in the worst weather.
The shore line had proved of varied excellence; there were many
beautiful crescent-shaped bays and numerous rivers, but mostly
with a bar of sand across their mouths. Fifteen different tribes
had been located, speaking as many languages or dialects, and all
with separate habits, customs, and religious beliefs, though with

GRIM DAYS 8 1

much in common. Surrounding each was a no-man's-land, a
kind of buffer area, which isolated one from the other. Big game
abounded everywhere.

On the whole, no place had been seen so wen suited for an ex-
perimental station as the Cape, and with more satisfied minds the
party settled down for the rainy season, to gain experience, learn
Chinyanja, the prevailing language, a sort of lingua franca along
the river and the Lake shore, and study the political and social
conditions amongst the natives. Mr. Henderson decided to remain
with them for a time before resuming his search for a site for the
Church of Scotland Mission.

XII. Grim Days

The Station was still being avoided by the natives, except by a
few of the most daring, and the whole party had to keep steadily
at work erecting goat and fowl houses, cutting wood, preparing
ground for rice and mapira, and performing all the other Robinson
Crusoe duties incidental to a pioneer settlement. One after another,
however, went prostrate with fever. The cause was not far to
seek. Behind the Station the low-lying plain had become a reser-
voir for the rain rushing down from the hills, and a marshy lagoon
had formed in which mosquitoes bred by millions and countless
frogs croaked by day and night.

There was only one thing to be done: the ridge of sand and
gravel between the. plain and the Lake must be cut through and
the stagnant water drained away. Every man was turned on to the
work, and toiled, navvy-like, in the blazing sun. The result was
inevitable: the Station was seldom free from illness. Always
two or more were down with climate-fever accompanied by head-
aches, sickness, and vomiting. The Doctor suffered with the rest,
and had to crawl from his pallet to attend to his patients. All
bore their troubles with uncomplaining courage, and came to a sort
of compact to say little to those at home about their illnesses,
since it might do the Mission harm. In the course of a few months
the Doctor had fifteen attacks of fever, but no hint of the situation
was sent abroad, nor was the worst noted in the daily diary of
events.

At that time it was thought that malarial fever was, as its name

implied, directly the effect of miasma arising from the ground.

After planting operations the Doctor often experienced severe

headaches and fever, and attributed the attack to the noisome

6

82 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

exhalations from the newly-opened soil. He had, however, noted
the association of mosquitoes with fever and guarded against them,
though he was unaware then of the actual part they played in
propagating the disease. Quinine was the principal antidote, but
it was very dear in those days, 12s. 6d. per ounce, and there were
only from 12 to 14 ounces among the medical stores.

It was a strange New Year's Day. All were awakened shortly
after midnight by the rain dripping through the roof upon their
faces; they saluted each other grimly with a " Happy New Year,"
revived the dying fire, and shifted their beds. That day work
went on as usual, but the Doctor's thoughts were hovering about
the home in Aberdeen. He pictured his parents in their occupa-
tions, and even felt that he could say at a particular time, " My
father is praying, and that for me." In the evening he dived into
his box and produced a gingerbread cake which his stepmother
had packed amongst his clothes. After the usual dose of quinine
a few ground-nuts were roasted and each had a slice of cake; then
all stood round the fire in the middle of the building and, joining
hands, sang, rather quaveringly, " Auld Lang Syne."

With the turn of the year the weather became worse. Electric
storms burst constantly over the district, the very ground shudder-
ing under the crashing of the thunder; the wind blew with cyclonic
force, uprooting trees and dashing birds against the walls of the
house, and piling the waves high upon the beach; at night wild
gusts came howling down the mountain-side; the rain lashed in
torrents upon the plain, flooding it and pouring through the ditch
in such volume that landslides were frequent and a spit of mud and
sand was formed in the Lake. The Ilala experienced a rough time,
and Young and Baker were unable to venture ashore. The con-
ditions were not abnormal, though the rainfall was heavier than
usual, the Lake rising over 2 feet during the season, but they
seemed extraordinary to the newcomers, who were naturally ig-
norant of the giant and fierce scale on which nature worked, and
were still insufficiently equipped to resist its action.

Continuous sickness prevailed. The Station became like a
hospital, almost every man being down and some vomiting for hours
at a time. The Doctor himself was very ill and was carefully and
tenderly nursed by those who were well. Johnston especially
was more than kind; he cared for the Doctor like a brother, and
did for him what he would not have done for himself. Between
the two a strong friendship had developed. " A dear fellow,
Johnston," the Doctor wrote. " I do thank God for his com-

GRIM DAYS 83

panionship and sound good sense." As soon, however, as the
Doctor could stand he was out directing operations. It was in
those days that he came to realize the value of his stepmother's
care of him as a boy. Looking back with maturer mind he began to
understand and appreciate her better. " I owe everything to
my stepmother," he said. " She it was who made me stand
Africa."

To the discomforts of the climate were added the perils from
wild beasts. During many a feverish hour in the eerie nights the
Doctor lay and listened to the roaring of lions on the plains, or the
stealthy movements of hyenas and leopards round the buildings.
Poisonous snakes came gliding in, a sudden hiss, sometimes, being
the only warning received of their presence: one morning the
Doctor found a pretty specimen lying on the mosquito curtain
above his face; on another occasion one was coiled up on the floor
at the head of his bed. Crocodiles and hippos prowled along the
beach. Elephants came by night and made havoc of the crops.
Insects were also an ever-present pest; an invasion of red ants,
no mean enemy, would rout out every man from the sleeping
quarters, and white ants working unseen destroyed buildings and
stores and everything they came across. " They were grim days
those," remarked the Doctor long afterwards.

But, despite everything, the work of the Station went on, Mr.
Young constructing a fort as a possible measure of protection,
and the others erecting houses, repairing and enlarging the trench,
and planting. Though the soil was poor, the gardens were beginning
to repay the hard labour expended on them: a dish of French beans
on the table one day giving promise of what might come. From
some of the natives a canoe was bought for 8 yards of calico, and a
paddle for a string of beads; also a fishing-net, 50 yards long and
9*4 yards wide, for which a rope was manufactured from palm
leaves, and then fresh fish from the Lake was added to the meagre
fare.

The Doctor never forget the primary object of the Mission.
" We cannot do much direct teaching yet, as we have the language
to learn, but I hope we preach every day the most eloquent sermon
that can be preached — a Christian life." Nevertheless to the huts
of the few natives who had attached themselves to the Station
he went regularly, attended by Sam, as interpreter, showed them
pictures, and taught them concerning Jesus. They listened with
deep attention and were much moved by the story of the resur-
rection. He encouraged them to ask questions, and at the end

84 LAWS OF LIVIXGSTONIA

begged them, when they returned to their villages, to tell their
friends the good news they had heard. They grew very friendly,
and in the evenings, round their fires, would tell tales of the country
which filled him with horror.

For the benefit of the staff he instituted on Wednesday evenings
a little service or prayer-meeting, a feature which continues at all
the stations of the Mission to the present day. On Sundays also
he held what would now be called a study circle, at which the Greek
New Testament was read. He was also acquiring Chinyanja, and
a vocabulary was slowly forming in his hands, the words and
meanings being secured by questioning the natives through Fred;
but it was a laborious process, as it could only be carried on in
times of leisure. " I often wonder," he said, " whether Fred or I
have at the end of an hour succeeded best in bothering the other.
Patience and perseverance — old acquaintances of mine — are, I
suppose, the best means of accomplishing the task."

XIII. The Doctor's Retreat

Conditions grew grimmer as the weeks wore on. The little
company were so completely isolated from the world that they
might have been in another planet; to all intents and purposes
nothing existed except their own environment bounded by the
distant hills. The loneliness and monotony began to tell on their
spirits, already affected by the feverish state of their bodies. An
attack of fever might only last a day or two, but it always left
lingering weakness and malaise, accompanied by a feeling of de-
pression and irritation which, against their will, found expression
and disturbed the good relations that usually existed. " If that
cursed malaria," wrote the Doctor, " would be content with poison-
ing the bodies of men, and would let their minds alone, half the
jars of life here might be avoided. As sure, however, as an attack
of fever approaches things look black and gloomy, the actions of
companions are sure to appear distorted, and their motives apt to
be misconstrued. Hence arise the greatest, I may say the only,
trials to be endured here."

There was not one of the staff who did not occasionally become
out of humour with himself and his colleagues. Mr. Young had
been the ideal man for leading the Expedition, but steady spade
work on land was naturally outside his province, though he did his
best. One day he was superintending some natives bringing in
logs, and the Doctor and Fred found him listening with a pleased

THE DOCTOR'S RETREAT 8j

face to their harmonious chanting. Fred looked at the Doctor with
the ghost of a smile. They were singing in their own language:

" We bring ufa for sale,

And yet he makes us work so hard!
We bring fowls for sale,

And yet he makes us work very hard!
We bring maize for sale,

And yet he makes slaves of us!"

The Doctor at last advised him to return home, and provided him
with a letter embodying his professional decision, but Young
thought it his duty to stay on.

Laws himself sought to keep in health and spirits by constant
employment; the worst day he had was one on which he had given
himself a holiday, and he was only restored to equanimity by taking
his gun and going off hunting. He was at pains to be patient and
forbearing, feeling it to be worth while, that the cause of Christ
might not be injured. But he had to fight against a lassitude he
could scarcely control; and, worse still, against a feeling that
spiritually he was growing cold. He reproached himself for yield-
ing to weariness when he might be doing the work of his Master.
" I often feel I ought to be the means of building up the spiritual
life of the place, and my light burns with a miserably low flame."
He had no comfort in the services he conducted; it was as if he
were deserted by the Divine power, and he returned from them
sick at heart and blamed himself for insufficient preparation.

This feeling reacted on the estimate he formed of his work and
relations with the staff. " I do need strength of mind and will,
for there is so much work lying to my hand to perform and I am
making very slow progress. I am so ready to be ruled by circum-
stances instead of making circumstances yield to me." And again:
" I need humility, I need wisdom, I need prompt apprehension of
the proper course to pursue in difficult circumstances, firmness in
carrying out all work and dealing with all sorts of individuals;
above all, I need more earnest piety and closer resemblance to my
Lord and Saviour."

Humility he earnestly desired to possess, a frame of mind which
would forget self, prefer and honour and advance others, and give
to God all the glory of progress and victory. On one occasion he
wrote: " I feel a good deal of irritation about the clamour for
honour which is made among people. Certainly there seems to be
little of the ' Let not thy right hand know what thy left hand doeth.'
Rather too much is it a seeking for the uppermost place at feasts.

86 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

God grant me grace to be content with seeking to please Him."
He cherished no ambition to be first in the eyes of the people at
home who were interested in the Mission, and much of the work
he did then and afterwards they never heard of; some of it, also,
was credited to others, and he was pleased that it should be so.
" Should," he said, " what I may be able to do be the means of
taking a stone out of the path of anyone following me and make the
way somewhat smoother and easier, my labour will not have been
entirely in vain."

Johnston and he continued all in all to one another in these
trying times; each sought to help and encourage the other. Some-
times at night they would quietly make their way to the Lake side,
and, kneeling in turn, would pour out their hearts in prayer for love
and unity to prevail and for wisdom and guidance to be given to
the staff in their difficult task. But usually the Doctor would
steal away by himself and mount Kungune Hill, which rose behind
to a height of 1500 feet. There, beside a rock, he had found a
spot where he could be alone, and there, whenever the work troubled
and oppressed him, whenever he was cast down, he resorted to
pray. The retreat became a kind of sanctuary hallowed by contact
with the Unseen, a place apart where he obtained the comfort and
the strength he needed.

The retreat looked down upon a wonderful scene — the green
plain, the blue Lake, the islands set in it like jewels, and the distant
range of hills; but for the marsh and standing water the situation
of the Station would have been one of the most desirable, as it was
one of the most beautiful, in the world. Often in the evening he
would sit and look across the quiet waters when the sun was setting
over the hills in a splendour of colour and be lost in admiration,
and then realize that along that far shore canoes were stealing with
cargoes of human flesh, and in the villages amongst the maize fields
and tall grass devilry was rampant.

Then his imagination would move out beyond that rampart
of blue mountains and wander over the vast plains and plateaux
of Africa and be arrested and amazed by the fact that the missionary
religion of Jesus was nineteen hundred years old, and yet there was
not one of His messengers in that enormous expanse of country
and amongst those countless hosts of people. He has often
presented that picture. " I could start from these hills and walk
westward, westward, week after week, meeting thousands of
villages, millions of people, and until I came to the west coast of
Africa I would not meet with a single missionary nor find one

CHIEFS, FRIENDLY AND UNFRIENDLY 87

when I arrived there. Away to the north-west such a journey
would take a month for every week that the other did before I
could meet a missionary at Old Calabar. My nearest neighbours to
the north were the Americans at Assouan and Cairo. To the east
the nearest missionary friend was to be found at Zanzibar on the
equator. Think of all that vast region with its millions of inhabit-
ants and no one seeming to care for their souls ! "

It was the sense of the greatness of the need in those regions
beyond that made him impatient with himself, his shortcomings,
and physical weaknesses; but he realized with Scottish good sense
that he could not achieve impossibilities; he could, however, do
his best within the utmost limit of his powers and opportunities,
and again and again he consecrated himself afresh and resolved,
with quiet, plodding, determined, persistent effort, to meet and
overcome all difficulties in the strength of his Master whose love
it was that inspired and constrained him. " Here I must ever be
fighting, working, watching, waiting, praying; rest and peace are
the enjoyment, the heritage, of the land beyond."

XIV. Chiefs, Friendly and Unfriendly

Until the dominant Chiefs in the neighbourhood were won over
there was no hope that the people in general would frequent the
Station, and the Doctor accordingly set himself to cultivate their
friendship. The " babbling Mponda," as he called the one on the
vital line of communication to the coast, was frequently visited. As
he was more or less drunk by day and became worse towards
evening, the Doctor called, as a rule, in the mornings. The Chief
would be asleep, with his wives watching over him, but by gentle
rubbing they gradually awakened him, and he would come, stagger-
ing, blear-eyed, and dirty, to the door. His first request was
usually for medicine, though he would not always take it.

" Can you give me anything to cure my large belly ? " he asked
the Doctor.

" Stop drinking pombe," said the Doctor bluntly.

" Never ! " was the emphatic reply.

The Doctor presented him with a blanket of many colours and
a red umbrella; he threw the blanket round his body and put up
the umbrella and strutted off to his harem to parade before his
wives. These numbered fourscore and ten; amongst them was a
girl of from ten to twelve about to become a mother. One night
past sunset the Doctor happened to find him sober and without

88 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the usual fletinue, and was impressed by his intelligence. He had
evidently moved about a good deal, and was anxious to visit
England in order to learn how to manufacture guns, gunpowder,
and cloth, the three all-important articles to an African Chief.
With some difficulty the Doctor extracted a promise that he
would send up boys from the village to be educated at the Mission,
and meantime he handed over Wakotani, who was found to have
lost almost all the religious knowledge he had acquired at the Univer-
sities Mission and in Bombay.

Another Chief named Tambala, a Yao, was located on the
eastern hills behind Mpemba's village, and there being reason to
believe he might be favourable to the Mission and willing to sell
stock and provisions the Doctor went across in the Ilala in order
to open up communication with him. Arriving at Mpemba's,
he was informed that the Chief was " not at home," and without
more ado Wakotani and five other natives were landed, armed
with guns and supplied with calico for barter, and told to make
their way to Tambala 's. With some misgiving the Doctor saw
them walk up to the bush and disappear. The Ilala returned to
the Station after dark, guided by a bonfire blazing on the beach.

A fortnight later at the place and time agreed upon the steamer
again anchored off the western shore and picked up a very scared
group of boys. As soon as the Ilala had gone they had been seized
and imprisoned and condemned to death, the reason being that a
gang of slaves, yoked neck to neck, was in the village at the time,
and Mpemba did not wish them to be seen. His brother inter-
posing, their lives were saved, but they were conveyed to a small
island where a large number of slaves were confined in huts and
pens. They discovered that there had been a plot to murder the
white men; in fact, if the steamer had remained longer it would
have been attacked. From what was learnt it was clear that both
Mpemba and Tambala were slave-dealers of the worst type and
worked hand in hand to supply the Arabs.

The Doctor was not discouraged; he organized a new party and
dispatched them by a different route. Ambushed by a body of
Ngoni, or hillmen, they defended themselves, firing a volley and
killing one man, and then threw down their calico, crying, " It
belongs to the English," and fled. They managed to reach the
village of Tambala, who treated them kindly and sold them goats
and sheep.

Still better success attended a visit to Makanjira, the Chief who
dominated the eastern side of the Lake opposite the Cape, and ran

CHIEFS, FRIENDLY AND UNFRIENDLY 89

the Kota Kota-Losewa slave ferry in conjunction with Jumbe.
He was the antithesis of Mponda: thin, of medium height, with a
light complexion which seemed to indicate Arab blood, and a
quiet and dignified demeanour.

" Would you like a white man to live among you to teach your
people and give them medicine ? " the Doctor asked.

" I do not mind," was the reply. " Do you give medicine for
all kinds of diseases ? "

" Well, there are some diseases which cannot be cured, but
many others which medicine would help."

The Chief grunted.

" Will you object to some of the children coming to our Sta-
tion ? " the Doctor pursued.

" No."

" And food — will you agree to your people supplying us with
it?"

" No ; any time the steamer calls you will get what you want."

This was so far satisfactory, but the Doctor realized that great
caution would have to be exercised: all the Chiefs were under the
influence of the Arab traders, and it would take time before the
moral pressure of the Mission could be brought to bear upon their
policy.

Makanjira reported the arrival of a white man at Mataka's,
about 60 miles from the Lake. This was Bishop Steere of the
Universities Mission making his way inland from Zanzibar; he
had with him Chuma, one of the lads who carried Dr. Livingstone's
body to the coast. The Bishop, however, came no farther.

Mr. Henderson usually went in the Ilala on these excursions
to prospect on behalf of the sister settlement, but in view of the
establishment of a strong mission already on the Lake, the Doctor
advised him rather to try farther south; while still of opinion
that the two ventures should be united, he believed that a half-way
station to the coast would have a strategic value and keep open
communications. It would be a good scheme, he thought, if a
position somewhere on the Shire Hills could be secured. Henderson
agreed, and supplying him with calico and stores the Doctor took
him down to the Shire River. Rain fell ceaselessly, the river was in
flood, the low-lying land was under water — it was a dismal, almost
a hopeless, outlook. At night they were serenaded by lions. More
menacing still was a war-band of Ngoni, three hundred strong, en-
camped on the higher banks, on their way to raid the hill villages.

In a dry blink some natives sailing over the flooded land were

9o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

hailed, and agreed to convey Henderson and his luggpge to the
headquarters of the nearest Chief. Next morning after worship
he bade those on board farewell, entered the canoe with Tom
Boquito, who was to act as interpreter, and was paddled away
towards the low foot-hills above which the mountains towered to
a height of 8000 feet, his intention being to visit the Magomero
district where the natives were friendly.

For a time nothing was heard of him; then vague reports came
about his movements: Tom was ill and had been seen carried in
a litter; there had been delays and troubles; fighting had been
going on in the region where he was wandering. Anxiety regarding
his fate deepened as the weeks went on, and at last the Ilala steamed
down to the Shire on the quest for news. When the traveller
appeared he was in great spirits regarding the country he had
explored. It was the most attractive he had seen, very fertile,
and as healthy as Scotland, and he had discovered an excellent
site. But the whole country was being systematically raided by
the Ngoni, many of the villages were deserted, and the people were
living amongst the rocky hills and making stealthy runs to their
gardens. They were anxious for him to settle amongst them, but
evidently more from the desire to have the protection of " the
English " than from any higher motive. He conveyed his en-
thusiasm to the Doctor, who was quick to realize the good effect
such a settlement would have on the unstable political conditions.
" Go in," he said, " and possess the land; get a footing and the rest
will follow; all will come to pass in God's good time."

Henderson once more plunged back into the wilderness.

XV. The Mystery of Elephant Island

During one of the trips to Mpemba's a call was made at the
largest island. The Doctor and the others were not long ashore
before they were forced to the conclusion that it was inhabited by
an elephant; its tracks were seen, and they had abundant evidence
of his presence as they advanced, in the shape of uprooted trees
and stripped bark and leaves. A search was made but without
result. How the animal could have reached the island was a
mystery. The nearest land was another island 5 miles on the Cape
side, and this again was more than half a mile from the Mission
beach. On the west the mainland was 10 to 15 miles distant.
These animals, however, swim long distances. The matter often
exercised their imagination and talk, and they began to wonder

THE MYSTERY OF ELEPHANT ISLAND 91

whether they had not made a mistake regarding the traces they
had discovered.

One hot afternoon when all were low and feverish a suggestion
was voiced that they should pay another visit to the island —
Elephant Island, as the Doctor had termed it. They would
enjoy a breath of fresh air, might secure fresh meat, and, what
appealed to the engineers, might obtain a supply of grease for the
engines.

An hour's run brought the Ilala to the island. As soon as they
landed, elephant tracks were seen in the sand and were followed
up. After a long scramble amongst the rocks and undergrowth
the cry rang out, " There he is ! " The beast stood facing them,
startled by their shouts and evidently uncertain how to proceed.
Mr. Young took aim with his large rifle and fired. He was hit,
and, swinging his huge bulk round, he started off at a rapid pace
and disappeared. It grew to dusk and a storm was threatening.
" We cannot follow him up to-night," said Mr. Young; " we must
put it off till to-morrow."

Next morning after a hasty breakfast they set off again. On
landing they divided into two parties, and, taking different routes,
scoured the island. It was amazing to note the power for destruc-
tion possessed by the animal, for huge trees had been torn up by the
roots and tossed aside; and also how sure-footed he was, for his
tracks often lay along the edge of precipices which dropped sheer
into the Lake. He was found at last, and a long and stern chase
ensued; he was frequently hit, but the bullets seemed to have no
effect. All day he was hunted; evening came, and still he eluded
the pursuers. Baffled and exhausted they boarded the Ilala and
returned to the Cape. Two days later they resumed the attack.
Adopting new tactics they surrounded the elephant and shepherded
him towards the Lake. By midday they had succeeded in driving
him on to the beach, where, encircled and shot at, he fell, close to
the water's edge. He was a noble animal and had fought a good
fight, but there is no sentiment felt in Africa towards big game.
With cries of delight and long knives in hand the crew rushed at
the huge carcase and proceeded to cut it up and carry the flesh on
board. On the Ilala arriving at the Station, a shout of joy went
up from the natives on shore when they saw the piles of meat.
Smoked and dried it would form a store that would last them for a
considerable time.

Next morning the party breakfasted on a foot of the elephant.
As they were discussing it a canoe was observed making rapidly

92 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

for the beach. Two natives jumped out. " That means news,"
was the general remark, and so it proved. The boys who had long
since gone down the Shire for letters had appeared at a village
on the eastern side of the Cape. The Ilala went speeding round
to the spot and returned with several bags of mail matter, and
for the remainder of the day the Station was strangely quiet. The
latest letter was dated 2nd September and this was the middle of
February.

With the boys came a Yao of the Shire Highlands called
Mlolo, one of his wives, a son, and four retainers. He had been
one of the fugitives who swarmed across the hills when the Uni-
versities Mission was established, and had remained with the
missionaries to the end. Hearing of the Livingstonia Mission, his
longing to be with the English again made him travel to Cape
Maclear. He was attracted by the Doctor and decided, in a day or
two, to return for his entire household, thirty souls in all. During
his absence, however, the Ngoni had swept across on a war- raid,
and had carried away his favourite wife and one of his daughters.
He appeared again later at Cape Maclear, established a village, and
by his quiet and steady life secured the Doctor's confidence and
friendship.

XVI. First Chloroform Case

The natives were quietly taking stock of the white men, observ-
ing all their actions, and reading their character more accurately
than perhaps they knew. What chiefly won them was the medical
work of the Doctor. Stories of his skill and kindliness were carried
by the few whom he attended and retold in the villages, and one
after another they ventured to the Station for medicine. Then a
surgical case was brought, but when all was ready the patient
flinched from the ordeal. At Mponda's a young man named
Koomefonjeera, with a cystic tumour above the left eye, came under
the Doctor's notice, and he offered to remove it, but Koomefonjeera
was nervous and afraid of the white man's magic, and declined.
On a later visit a canoe paddled up to the Ilala and the native in
it asked to see the Doctor. It was Koomefonjeera, who had made
up his mind to undergo the operation.

" You will have to come to Cape Maclear," said the Doctor, and
he agreed, two companions accompanying him.

In the forenoon of 2nd March the Doctor made his preparations.
It was the first chloroform case in Central Africa. Assisted by

FIRST CHLOROFORM CASE 93

Johnston he placed the young man on the dining-table. The two
natives stood by, along with another from a village in the vicinity,
all watching the proceedings with an interest bordering upon awe.
There was no difficulty about the case, but the Doctor felt that the
whole future of the work depended upon its success, and breathed
a petition for guidance and help. When the chloroform was
administered and the patient lay still and insensible the astonish-
ment of the natives knew no bounds. " Za za ! wa wa ! " they
kept crying. With unfaltering precision the Doctor removed the
tumour, and by evening Koomefonjeera was doing well. He was,
soon after, dismissed cured. " God was very gracious to me," the
Doctor wrote. " What has been done may be noised abroad, and
God may more and more give His servant power in the eyes of the
heathen and open the doors of their hearts to receive His message
of love."

His desire was fulfilled; the news spread far and wide, and
patients from a distance began to appear, drawn, as those in the
time of Christ were drawn, by the reports of healing miracles. Not
only did the event attract men: it succeeded in doing which it
would have been difficult to accomplish otherwise — it brought
women about the Mission. None had hitherto appeared from the
neighbourhood, partly through fear, partly on account of the
restrictions imposed on their movements; but one day some
villagers conveyed a woman who desired medicine. She was
accompanied by a little boy. Realizing the importance of the
occasion the Doctor treated her with kindness and consideration,
persuaded her to stay the night, provided her with quarters attached
to the kitchen, and made sure that she was comfortable. The boy,
a lively little fellow, he made much of, in the hope that the favour
shown him might reach the ears of the villagers and pave the way
for other children coming about the Station. The story of the
woman was a sad one, but common enough in Central Africa. She
had been captured by the Ngoni in one of their forays, and, shortly
after, giving birth to twins, was made to choose between burying
one alive and being herself killed. She elected to live for the sake
of the one and the other was put under the ground.

The friendly reception of this woman became known, as every-
thing becomes known in Africa, and soon afterwards an old Chief,
brought his wife and left her at the Station. The Doctor was
deeply impressed with the power which his medical knowledge
gave him over the natives and the opportunity it afforded of com-
mending to them the message of the Divine healer of humanity;

94 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

already he felt well repaid for all the self-denial and toil he had
undergone to qualify himself for the work.

But what he ardently desired were converts. The natives
about the Station seemed saturated and stupid with age-long
tendencies and habits. They had some idea of a Supreme Being —
Mulungu they called Him — but that was all. " Here," he wrote,
" we have not any highly elaborated system of religion to fight
against, but the blank open-mouthed stare of wondering ignorance
which knows nothing about spiritual things and cares less." " Who
made the lions, hills, and trees ? " he asked. They did not know.
" Mulungu," he said, and proceeded to speak of death and resur-
rection. " What ! " they exclaimed in wonder. " All the people
devoured by crocodiles and wild beasts, all who have been beheaded
in war — all these rise and appear before Mulungu ! " It was past
their comprehension.

No regular service could yet be held on Sundays; the Doctor
simply sat with those who happened to be at the Station and showed
them pictures and talked with them, ofter taking as a subject
some event that had occurred during the week. One frequently
discussed was the ordeal of mwave, a poison obtained from a tree,
one-twentieth of the strength of the arrow poison which the natives
said was the gall of the crocodile. To drink mwave was the common
test for innocence or guilt. The Doctor pointed out how foolish
it was to attribute to dead matter the power of an omniscient God.
He had now begun to speak brokenly to them in their own tongue,
but in his eagerness to impart what he wished to say, and in his
impatience with his inability to express himself, he would often
stop and pour out his words in English to Sam, who would have
difficulty in keeping up with his flow of language.

It was to the children of the country that he turned with antici-
pation and hope, realizing that in their hands lay the future of
Africa. One day a boy appeared with some men who sought work;
the Doctor pounced upon him and enrolled him as his first scholar.
The teaching consisted merely of a few lessons on the alphabet,
but the task gave the Doctor extraordinary pleasure. "It is a
delight," he wrote, " to have a scholar to teach." When the men
left, the boy went with them, but returned in a fortnight and sur-
prised the Doctor with what he had retained. Presently there
were four boys laboriously learning the letters and making pro-
gress. " The teaching of the alphabet to-day," again wrote the
Doctor, " was the best time I have had yet, and I came away
feeling glad of having done some real missionary work. Most

FIRST CHLOROFORM CASE 95

people at home would say this was rather sorry work for me to
be at. I am thankful for it. After having been here for months and
unable to get the object dearest to your heart begun, the smallest
opening is the more eagerly grasped."

Another boy who came to work, Kabanda, a taking lad, was
from a village at some distance. The Doctor had his eye upon him
for a scholar, and when the Chief of the village arrived with his
wife as a patient he thought he saw his opportunity. On Sunday,
when speaking to the natives, he referred to the value of reading;
to the Chief he said that if Kabanda knew how to read, a paper
could be sent to his village with the number of fowls, goats, and
provisions required by the Station, and Kabanda would know
what was wanted, and would send the articles. The Chief was
frankly sceptical, and the Doctor turned to Johnston and asked him
to go out of the hut and walk some distance away.

" Now, Chief," said the Doctor, " what do you wish said on
this piece of paper ? "

"Pa na li muntu " (There was a man).

Johnston was called in and read the words, to the astonishment
of the Chief and his wife. Lest there should be any doubt another
trial was made, a longer piece being written, with the same result.

" Well," said the Doctor, " will you send Kabanda to be taught
reading ? "

" Yes, yes," was the reply, and Kabanda entered the class.

The Doctor's conception of missionary work was as wide as
Dr. Livingstone's. -He gave the native labourers lessons in hygiene,
showed them how to use European tools, instructed them in garden-
ing, explained natural phenomena, and generally grounded them
in the rudimentary principles of civilized life. They knew nothing
of the commonest manufactured articles. A watch, the flame from
a match, the burst of fire under a burning glass, were all miracles
to them, as incomprehensible as the miracles recorded in the New
Testament were to the people who saw them. With their ideas
and habits he was perpetually at war and was concerned to train
them in tidiness and cleanliness. Anything done wrong he would
make them do over again. " It must be done right," he would
say.

Writing at this time to Dr. Stewart at Lovedale the Doctor
said: " We have a splendid field here for native catechists or men
from Lovedale. In a short time we shall be ready for them."
When Stewart read this he turned to two letters he had just received
from Glasgow citizens offering to pay for native assistants in

96 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Livingstonia. It seemed more than a coincidence: it looked like
a Divine direction, and in the light of after-events it proved to be
so. Stewart called meetings of the young men of Lovedale and
laid the matter before them. Fourteen volunteered as evangelists,
teachers, and artisans, and of these six were chosen, although only
four ultimately went to Nyasa.

XVII. A Prisoner of Hope

The spirits of the company did not improve with the passing
of the days. A change came in the weather; the hot and steamy
season of the rains was over, the cool winter-time had come, bringing
keen winds which dried up the marshes — producing much malaria
in the process — and brought on chills and rheumatism. One
morning the temperature dropped to 54 degrees. The Station could
seldom show a clean bill of health. Provisions also grew scarce,
and the daily ration of bread was reduced to a bit the size of a small
scone. The Doctor would gladly have given a sovereign for a
ship's biscuit. No word came from the outer world. Nothing was
heard of Mr. Henderson.

The fear excited amongst the slavers had subsided and the
trade had reasserted itself. Slave-gangs were leisurely made up
by Chiefs not a dozen miles away; several of the victims had
worked at the Mission and the Doctor knew them well. They
were tied neck to neck, loaded with ivory, and marched off
openly, via Mponda's, to the coast. The Doctor was wild with
anger. " I never felt so much inclined for fighting on behalf of
the oppressed," he wrote. " I feel much the need of wisdom in such
circumstances to prevent me saying and doing anything wrong."
Tidings came of a witchcraft trial in a village near the Station.
On the death of a native three men were accused of bewitching
him and were forced to undergo the poison ordeal. Two vomited
and were declared innocent, the third died and was deemed guilty.

Such events reacted on the nerves of the staff and increased
their depression. When 'July came without a break in the loneliness
and monotony, it was decided that the Doctor should proceed to
the head of the cataracts, and if no mail had arrived that he should
make his way to Quilimane. He reached Pembi, near the head of
the rapids, and then marched down to Ramo-Ku-Kan's, where he
was told that native postmen from the coast had passed and gone
up the opposite side. Retracing his steps, he found Mr. Young
excited with the news contained in the home letters.

Bandawe Harbour: where the Station was first established

Where the Ilala anchored : The Scene To-day, showing how the
Lake has receded

WHERE DRUMMOND
LANDED

/iT LANDING PLACE

CH'MBA^>
5TAT.0N •/ ^^i^MAKUSl HILL

WHERE D?L/WNG STONE
LANDED .

MATETE $

AKi *l(. All. aW.
ill. Ml. ,\,u

Sketch Map of Bandawe District

The Nyasa Hippopotamus

A PRISONER OF HOPE 97

"Reinforcements!" he cried. "Dr. Black; John Gunn, an
agriculturist; Robert S. Ross, an engineer and blacksmith; A. C.
Miller, a weaver — all for Livingstonia ; also Dr. Stewart and a
band of native workers from Lovedale."

" And Blantyre? " queried the Doctor.

" A strong contingent: Dr. Macklin and five artisans."

There was, in addition, Mr. Cotterill, son of Bishop Cotterill of
Edinburgh, coming to investigate the trade possibilities of the
country and bringing with him a steel boat, the Herga, subscribed
for by the boys at Harrow, where he had been a master, and £500
worth of barter goods presented by members of the Free Church;
and also a Mr. Thelwall, a Roman Catholic, an artist and repre-
sentative of the Standard and Illustrated London News. The party
had come up the coast in a Swedish missionary steamer.

Much pleased with the good news, the Doctor gathered up his
letters and, climbing into the rigging, read them in peace. What
he was told regarding the jubilation in Scotland over the success
of the Expedition amazed him. " I can see nothing to be proud
of," he said, " but much to be grateful for."

The Ilala returned to Cape Maclear, where a bustle of preparation
broke out. New houses and huts had to be constructed; one
called the " two-decker " was the first two-storied house in Central
Africa. Arrangements had also to be made for increased provision-
ing. In August, when matters were well advanced, Mr. Young
and the Doctor steamed again to the head of the cataracts, the
former proceeding en foot to Ramo-Ku-Kan's, whilst the latter
remained with the vessel along with Macfadyen and Jack, who was
cook and stoker, and two of the crew. Days and then weeks passed
without sign of the reinforcements, but the Doctor never found time
hanging on his hands. In a short while the Ilala, which was moored
about five hours' march from the first falls, became a mission
station on a small scale. Several families arrived, built huts on the
banks, and lived secure in the favour of the white man. Many
other natives came from villages a day or two's march away,
and regular teaching went on. Morning and evening worship was
never omitted, the gathering repeating the Lord's Prayer in Chi-
nyanja, the Doctor's first bit of translation work. He also began to'
translate the Gospel of Mark. Then he started a class for women
and gave them lessons in sewing. He shaped and cut out simple
skirts and blouses, and taught them how to hold and manipulate
the needle, guiding their fingers until they were proficient, and
making them pick out any piece of work that was not done to his
7

98 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

satisfaction. He was secretly thankful, however, that no inspector
of schools was to examine the handiwork.

By this time he was quite an expert in darning, cooking, washing,
and other domestic duties. In a letter to the Thin boys he thus
describes a blanket washing:

" Our nearest approach to a tub is a tin-lined box and a galvanized iron
pail. Neither of these would hold a blanket and something bigger must be
had. So we had the dinghy well cleaned out, fresh water put in, an awning
put over; and then rolling up shirt-sleeves and trousers, with helmet on, I
was soon seated in my tub, having my first trial of washing a blanket. I had
not proceeded half-way in the operation when I thought to have an apprentice,
and so had Jack into the boat along with me, and did my best to instruct him
into the mysteries of washing. Neither of us were sorry when our work was
finished, and Jack's ' Oh, ho ! my back aches plenty,' found a ready echo in
my mind."

September arrived and the days passed, and still no word came
up the river. " I am a prisoner of hope," the Doctor wrote, and
it seemed as if the suspense would never end.

XVIII. Filling the Pot

Much of his time was spent in hunting, not by way of recreation,
but in order to stock the larder and fill the pot. Pure sport had
no attraction for him. He was not in any sense a hunter: before
entering Africa he had only once fired a fowling-piece and never
had had a loaded rifle in his hand. But he soon learnt that he
would have to shoot game, and that often, for the members of the
staff tired of tough fowl and craved for fresh meat, whilst the native
followers had also to be provided for. He never, however, shot for
shooting's sake, and never destroyed the life of some strong and
beautiful creature of the wilds without feeling sorry. At this
time he went out daily: game of all kinds was abundant, and so,
therefore, were the larger beasts of prey.

One day he and Jack set out after breakfast across the mile-
wide track of ground bordering the river. During the rains this
was a mud marsh, but now it was baked and cracked and mottled
with the footprints of hippopotami and elephants. Before entering
the long dry grass they ascertained the direction of the wind by
letting some light dust fall, then cautiously advanced until they
caught sight of a herd of small and graceful antelope. At the first
indication of danger these closed up and stared at the intruders;
the leader gave a bark-like cry, and off they went in single file,
leaping over high bush with the greatest ease. A couple of wild

FILLING THE POT 99

boar were next seen digging for roots; they were ugly foes to
encounter, for they possessed formidable tusks and were said to be
a match for the lion. The Doctor took no chances: there was
peril both in retreat and advance; and he adopted the bold course
of fighting them. One fell to his rifle and was finished with his
revolver; the other disappeared.

What he was after, however, was a waterbuck, and making a
long circuit he reached a marshy tract where the reeds and grass
were higher than his head. Jack climbed an ant-hill and instantly
slid down, whispering, " Nakoswi in nswalow " (" A great many
waterbuck and antelope"). Taking advantage of every tuft of
grass and every bunch of bush they gradually worked their way
forward until they emerged upon an open expanse where the animals
were browsing. The Doctor crawled forward to a point indicated
by Jack, but as he raised his rifle some bird gave a chirp or two, and
at the alarm the herd moved swiftly off. " Cha ipa " (bad), said
Jack, and once more they went on. Suddenly half a dozen zebras
broke across their path and were out of sight in a moment — they
were wary creatures, and a shot at them could seldom be obtained.

Passing through a clump of young trees Jack's quick eye noticed
a fine large waterbuck feeding alone and therefore more off his
guard. Selecting a large tree as a cover, the Doctor crept within
a hundred yards and fired. Jack's yell and headlong flight to
the spot were sufficient to prove the success of the shot. The
animal was too heavy to carry, and he proposed to leave the Doctor
and go back for assistance, but some intuition made the latter
hesitate. " Cut off its head," he said, " and bring that, and you
can return for the body when we reach the ship." The fact that
lions often roamed about by day always made the missionaries
careful of their movements.

On the way back many species of small antelope were seen,
dashing through the grass, and also a koodoo, the flesh of which was
much prized. There were signs of buffalo herds, but no oppor-
tunity of getting near them. Large numbers of guinea-fowl were
started, and the Doctor shot three in order that the diet might be
varied. While making their way along the river bank a springbok
came into view. Startled and confused, it made a leap into the
river and tried to escape farther down. Taking out his knife the
Doctor ran along the bank, entered the water, and after some
difficult work succeeded in wounding and capturing the animal, and
dragged it to the bank.

It had been a good day for the commissariat, but the meat was

ioo LAWS OF LIVINGSTOXIA

not yet on the Ilala. Jack, with other natives, made for the body
of the waterbuck only to find that a lion had been before them and
had dragged the carcase through a marsh, with water 3 feet deep,
into a dense mass of reeds. Had the Doctor remained at the spot
the lion would probably have preferred him; at any rate, he would
have had to face the beast alone.

Then the Doctor, whilst in the dinghy, was charged by a huge
hippo and escaped to safety after some exciting moments. This
was not an infrequent occurrence on the river. These creatures
slumbered in the security of the reeds until four or five in the after-
noon, then plunged into the water, and as darkness came on
made their way inland to forage among the green vegetation and
ravage the gardens of the natives.

The day's work over, the Doctor settled in the bows of the Ilala.
On the bank two or three large fires were lit and kept blazing, and
in the drift of the smoke he sat and read and wrote, half -suffocated,
but comparatively free from the attack of the mosquitoes that
invaded the vessel. The cure becoming worse than the disease,
he retreated to the shelter of his mosquito-net. As he did so the roar
of a hungry lion broke the silence of the night.

XIX. Reinforcements

At sunset on 8th October native runners arrived with a mail-
bag and news of the approach of the reinforcements. There had
been much delay at various points; the majority of the men had
been down with fever, some severely, and they were making their
way slowly and in detachments up the river. Shortly afterwards
the first contingent put in an appearance and were hurried to
Cape Maclear, the Ilala returning to meet the remainder. The
Blantyre party, who had been met down the river by Mr. Henderson,
then weakened by illness, proceeded straight to the Shire Highlands.

A dinner in honour of the occasion was given at the Cape.
Dr. Laws prepared the roast, Dr. Black baked the pie and tart,
and Dr. Stewart set the table. Two of the Lovedale natives acted
as waiters. The Union Jack flew from the corner of the thatched
hut and the Ilala was gay with bunting. Dr. Stewart presided,
and referred to the remarkable fact that in Central Africa, where a
short time before no white man had been, there were seventeen
Britons sitting dining together.

" I hope," said Dr. Laws, who spoke next, " that by another
year there may be many more."

REINFORCEMENTS 101

" Oh, oh ! " interjected the company. " Explain yourself ! "
"The ladies! " — cries which indicated how the remark had been
interpreted and covered the Doctor with confusion.

" Dr. Laws," wrote Dr. Black, " is a good, earnest, energetic,
and brave man." Dr. Stewart was at first delighted with the settle-
ment— " the beauty of the position, its comparative healthiness,
and vast superiority over the climate of the Zambezi and Shire,
the pleasant mornings and the cool nights. There is every reason
to be thankful that we have got so good a position. Of this I
am certain that Englishmen are living within the tropics in large
numbers in a hundred worse places. I have great hopes that time
will fully confirm our favourable impression of the climate." Stewart
was afterwards the severest critic of the site.

Mr. Young left at once for England, Laws conveying him to
the cataracts. Both had come through much hardship and peril
together, and despite some trying times incidental to life in an
isolated community, they had maintained their friendship and their
admiration for each other. The older man had a special liking
for his " boy," as he called the Doctor, and in his racy addresses
in Scotland spoke of him as " the finest specimen of a missionary "
he had ever met. "He is true blue. They tell me I have got a
very bad temper, and so I have, sometimes — there is no use of a
lion having a tail unless it wags it — but whether I was bad tempered
or not I never had any mishap with him." The Doctor, however,
wished that Young had drawn a less brilliant picture of what had
been achieved.

Now in full command of the llala, the Doctor on returning up
river made a thorough exploration of Lake Pamalombe; in a
secluded creek he found Mahomet, who told him that the dhow
which had been boarded on the Ilala's first trip was lying wrecked
at Kota Kota. As the steamer was still the one link connecting
the Mission with civilization he determined that no precaution
to ensure its safety should be omitted, and accordingly for a time
he spent his nights on board. He occasionally occupied himself
with photography in these days, and did the developing after dark.
For a washing dish he had a tin box pierced with holes which he
slung over the side of the vessel into the Lake.

The effect of the infusion of fresh spirit and energy into the
Station was soon noticeable. Dr. Stewart was a missionary states-
man with an organizing mind, and he wrought many changes which
added to the well-being of the staff. Laws loyally supported him,
as he had done Mr. Young, and learnt much from his wider

io2 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

knowledge and experience. Stewart adopted one of his suggestions
regarding fewer hours of work, and the day's time-table was now
arranged thus: 6 to 8 a.m., work; 8 to 9 a.m., breakfast; 9 to
12 a.m., work; 12 a.m. to 3 p.m., dinner and rest; 3 to 5 p.m.,
work; 5.15 p.m., worship; 5.30 p.m., tea. Saturday afternoon
was free. With less continuous labour tasks were better per-
formed, while ampler leisure made for health and contentment.
Dr. Stewart insisted on the amenities of life being observed. The
houses became more home-like. Earthenware replaced the bat-
tered enamelled dishes and Madeira chairs the improvised seats
of native wood. No lamps, however, were yet available, though
oil was being obtained from the ground nut, and candles continued
to be used. " The wilderness feeling is gone," wrote the Doctor,
" and we are much more lively and comfortable. The past year
seems now like a nightmare." But a pioneer year amidst such
utterly strange surroundings could not have been otherwise.

Even with the greatly improved conditions Dr. Black — who
proved a delightful colleague, tender and watchful in sickness,
kindly and sympathetic in times of difficulty, and as skilful with
the axe or saw as with the surgeon's knife — felt that he was beginning
to grow rough and snarly. " It is time," he suggested, " that ladies
were on the Station." He was thinking of his fiancee, but Laws
demurred. He had an instinctive impression that all had been too
smooth hitherto; it was like the calm before the storm; fiery trials
were bound to come before the Mission could finally rest on a
sure foundation.

" But why ? " persisted Black.

" We are still outside British territory and beyond British pro-
tection. We are in a no-man's-land. The Portuguese claim the
coast and will claim Nyasa as well, although they have never been
within 200 miles of the Lake. They will be more afraid of a woman
coming here than ten men, because it will mean a permanent settle-
ment, and that they will not allow."

Black admitted the force of the argument.

" I see as clearly as you do," continued the Doctor, " the need
for gentler influence to tame our roughness, but we shall both have
to be patient a little."

To Miss Gray he wrote with remarkable prevision: " It is quite
possible war may yet come to the Lake. There is no likelihood of
it coming for a long time — God grant it may be never; still we must
keep our eyes open to every possible contingency. I must not forget
Cromwell's command, ' Pray to God, but keep your powder dry.' "

REINFORCEMENTS 103

His attitude on the question of Miss Gray's coming to Africa
showed how conscientiously and impersonally he worked out his
problems. Much as he longed for her, the interests of the Mission
came first. If his engagement with the Free Church merged into
one of indefinite length, or into life-service, it would be right for
her to join him; but suppose he were to continue to be subject to
recall at the option of the United Presbyterian Board ? She
might come out and then they might have to return, and so the
Church would have been put to unnecessary expense. Again, if
she came it might seem to pledge his Board to maintain relations
with the Free Church. He therefore wrote requesting the Board
to consider the situation quite apart from his personal feeling.

In Scotland there was a strong interest in his work and a desire
that he should continue in it. Even if the arrangement with the
Free Church terminated, the Board took it for granted that he would
remain by his " beloved Lake," and were ready to entertain any
proposal he might make for the establishment, in a neighbourly
spirit, of a distinctively United Presbyterian Mission. The idea
of an independent venture was, however, repugnant to him; he
would not refuse to obey the Board if they decided to begin one,
but it would be against his better judgment. " How," he wrote,
" could I explain to the tribes the difference between the missions ?
There is no word to express it. When visiting Makanjira he asked
us if we were the same kind of Englishmen as Bishop Steere's party:
in one sense we were and in another we were not, but how could
we explain it? The Mission should not only be one but appear
one in the sight of the natives." He acquiesced in the decision to
prolong his engagement, but reiterated his view that the United
Presbyterian Church should go a step further and join the Free
Church in supporting the Mission. " We want the hearts of all
Christians enlisted on behalf of Central Africa. After finding how
men of different churches can work together here, I have still more
confidence in my old view that the members of the different com-
mittees could serve on the Board of the Mission and share expenses.
Lake Nyasa has been reached, but it has yet to be won for Christ;
and again, even Lake Nyasa is not in the centre of the great African
continent. There are regions beyond and they too must be reached.
For this purpose much more money will be required than at present
is at the command of the Free Church Committee."

In all this he exhibited wisdom and prescience. In his " think-
ing ahead " he outstripped the mind of the Church, as he was often
to do. Events soon proved the soundness of his views, though

104 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

many years were to pass before he saw his ideal of one Presbyterian
Church of Central Africa beginning to be realized.

XX. An Appeal from Blantyre

The introduction of the four Kafirs from Lovedale into the
work was an experiment which the Doctor regarded with keen
interest. All had risen out of racial ignorance and degradation,
and were a remarkable testimony not only to the innate qualities
of the native but also to the value of Christian education and
training.

When Dr. Stewart had asked for volunteers Shadrach Ngunana
rose and said his desire " was to preach Christianity, however
weakly and imperfectly." He was a member of the United Presby-
terian Mission Church at Emgwali, a fact, which, perhaps, predis-
posed the Doctor in his favour. He was appointed the first regular
teacher of the school, which was now attended by twelve boys and
two girls.

William Koyi was a Gaika Kafir born -in 1846. When in 1857
his nation destroyed its cattle and grain and practically committed
suicide he escaped starvation by seeking employment elsewhere.
At the age of twenty-three he became a Christian and developed
a passion for education. Although Lovedale was over 150 miles
away he walked there and attended the ordinary school course.
Active, willing, and trustworthy, he gained the respect of all and
rose to a position of trust and responsibility. When the call came
from Nyasa he said, " I have only a half talent, but I am willing
to go and be a hewer of wood and drawer of water." Dr. Stewart,
however, did not regard him as suitable until one day when starting
on a journey something went wrong with the harness, and Koyi,
observing it, came and deftly put -the matter right. That decided
the Doctor to send him.

Mapas Ntintili was an artisan and was accepted on account
of his good character.

The fourth, Isaac Williams Wauchope, had been trained as a
teacher. From the first, his health gave cause for anxiety. A
spell of fever left him practically insane; he threatened the staff
and struck Dr. Laws, and sinking at last into a state of coma was
watched night and day by the three medical men in turn. When he
recovered consciousness he declared that he was morally unfit for
his position and that he had volunteered for Nyasa to escape the
consequences of his sin. Delusions, the doctors knew, were common

AN APPEAL FROM BLANTYRE 105

in fever, but as he had another serious relapse it was decided to send
him back to South Africa. Dr. Stewart and Dr. Black were ill,
but the latter volunteered to accompany the patient to Quilimane
and see him off in the care of one of Mr. Cotterill's seamen who was
returning to England. To this Dr. Laws objected. " For your
fiancee's sake," he said, " you must not go. I will take him down
and Dr. Stewart can come in the steamer for a change." So it
was arranged, and on Monday, 4th December, the llala left her
anchorage.

Towards sunset on Tuesday, as a village near Pimbi was reached,
a native runner, clad in loincloth, was observed racing towards the
bank, holding a stick which held a letter in a cleft at the top. He
said he had come from Blantyre, as the sister station had been
called, and had been waiting some days in the hope that the steamer
would appear. The letter was addressed to Dr. Laws, and read:

" Blantyre,
December 1, 1876.

" Dear Doctor, — ' Come over and help us.' In other words, can you and
will you come and take charge of this mission, at all events till next July or
August ; but I hope that you might be willing to stay here permanently, as the
site is a good one in almost every way you look at it, and a good head is much
required. I am not able, neither am I fitted, to carry the work on. I should
be perfectly willing to stay as long as you wished, so it is no wish to bolt that
makes me ask you to come, but the conviction that some one better qualified
than myself is much required here at this the outset. Can you not come up
and see us? The road is good. Mr. Young was highly pleased with it, and
you can manage the journey in a day and a half. We should be delighted to
see you.

" All here have been and are still down, more or less, with fever and other
complaints. The doctor a month confined to bed. If you can't come to see us,
and are disposed to entertain my proposal, send the man back at once and I
shall try to come down and have a talk. You told me something this time
last year, Doctor; come and see how true your words were, the more's the pity.
Try and come. I much require to see you or some one like you. If Dr.
Black is disengaged, perhaps he would consent to come if you can't. Let
some one have pity on the Auld Kirk. Seriously I do hope that some one
with vigour and earnestness and practical knowledge will be head here soon,
as it would be a sad matter to have a second failure on these Highlands.
All that is wanted, as Mr. Young puts it in his book, is the ' master mind.
Hoping to see you soon. — I am, yours truly, Henry Henderson.

" P.S. — Of course, Doctor, I am quite prepared to arrange as to salary and
the like in the way you would desire."

The two men looked at each other in dismay. " What do you
say ? " asked Stewart. Laws replied that he wanted to think it
out, and went away and walked up and down for a time. He had

106 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

no wish to interfere in the affairs of another mission, but such an
appeal, betraying in every sentence a state of depression and dis-
couragement, could not be ignored; they must proceed to the aid
of their brother missionaries. " Well ? " Stewart said. " We can't
stand aside from the need of Christ and His work and be guilt-
less," Laws replied. Stewart acquiesced, though his experienced
mind had misgivings as to how the matter would be regarded in
Scotland.

Ere they were ready Wauchope eluded his keeper and dis-
appeared. Whether he had thrown himself into the river or had
wandered into the bush was not known; search parties were sent
out, bonfires lit, and revolvers let off at intervals without result.
Macfadyen and Baker were down with fever. Crooks alone was
able to keep watch. Nevertheless the doctors set out on their way
to Blantyre, making inquiries as they went regarding the missing
man. By and by three shots rang out and three were fired in
response, and Crooks appeared with the intelligence that Wauchope
had been brought back to the vessel; he had run amok in a village
and had been seized and bound by the people.

The doctors, after a rough journey into the uplands, arrived in
rolling country dominated by isolated hills, and found the mission
party dwelling in native huts and no indication of activity or pro-
gress. The spot was not exactly the one selected by Henderson —
that was farther on, at Magomero, the site of the Universities
Mission. But in their march from the river the little band had
become exhausted, footsore, and feverish, and camping one night
beside a large fig tree they said, like the Lotos-eaters, " We will go
no farther," and there they had remained. It was a fortunate, if
accidental, choice, and Dr. Laws was extraordinarily impressed
with it. The climate was exquisite; on occasions it was possible
to feel cold; the soil was fertile, and there was a large stream
running in a deep bed, close by. Many villages were scattered
about the plains, and mission work could be begun at once. From
a strategic point of view its position was incomparable; it was
half-way on the line of communication between Livingstonia and
the coast, and the missions would be able to support one another.
Again the Doctor lamented the policy which was establishing two
independent missions, and straightway wrote, as a forlorn hope, to
Scotland urging union — even in the matter of river transport, he
pointed out, much money would be saved by amalgamation.
Mr. Henderson now admitted that he was right.

The trouble was that Henderson was not suited for organizing

TWO STRANGERS ON THE RIVER 107

the Station; he had never, he said, undertaken such a task, and
the others were inexperienced and unable to plan and carry out
the necessary operations. Henderson felt that he must return to
Scotland to advise the Committee, and he proposed that Dr. Laws
or Dr. Black should be released for a year to superintend the Station.
Dr. Laws stated that he was ready to do what was best in the
interests of the missions and for the advancement of Christ's
cause; but Dr. Stewart would not consent to him leaving Living-
stonia for a year, suggesting instead that the Free Church mission-
aries should take the work in turn and supply teacher and evangelists
and artisans; and this was decided on and the financial terms
arranged.

" I am afraid," wrote the Doctor to a Church of Scotland friend,
" that in the minds of a good many at home such a proceeding
may raise feelings of jealousy or discontent from the idea that by
doing so the Established Church is knuckling down to the Free
Church, and that members of the Free Church may say the Estab-
lished Church has had to do so. Should you hear of any such
remarks, pray do all you can to put an end to them, for in our
hearts at least such thoughts have no existence. The step Mr.
Henderson has taken does him honour, since it shows his willing-
ness to sink every personal consideration in the deeper desire that
Christ's kingdom may be advanced." Failing union he described
the kind of man that should be sent out to command the Station:

A man who has been wrapped in the lap of luxury, has gone through
school, college, and hall course, with little or no experience of human nature,
but the most exact theories on the subject, would find himself out of his
element here, especially should he be tinged with self-conceit and ideas of his
own importance. What is needed is a man of good common sense and sound
judgment rather than of book-learning, though the latter is by no means to
be despised; one with the pliability which will enable him to lay aside pre-
conceived notions of how things ought to be done and adapt himself to the
circumstances of the case. A missionary requires to be a Jack-of -all-trades,
and those who would come out expecting to act the fine gentleman had better
stay at home and save himself great discomfort and his companions much
bad feeling. Above all, a man is needed with a large heart full of love to his
Master who cares little for Established Churchism, Free Churchism, United
Presbyterianism, or any other 'ism."

XXL Two Strangers on the River

The Doctor proceeded to Quilimane, taking with him several of
the boats to bring up a large quantity of Blantyre goods that were
lying there. The journey was a pleasant and picturesque experi-

108 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

ence, having all the charm of gipsy life. By day and night, while
drifting downstream, his men would sing weird boat songs, most
of them with a strain of sadness in them, like the sorrow songs of
the Southern States of America. There was one favourite which
ran:

" Without Father, without Mother,
Thou art our Mother Mary,"

a relic of the far-off days when the Jesuits had missions in the land.

Early one morning, while lying half-awake in the boat, a native
appeared on the bank with a cup of green tea and a plateful of
mangoes and asked for the loan of a mirror. The Doctor stared
up at the black face in surprise.

" Who sent those ? " he asked. " What do you want with a
mirror ? "

" My master sent them; he is over there."

" His name ? "

" Rhodes."

Presently they met. The stranger, a man of powerful build,
proved to be Herbert Rhodes, a brother of Cecil Rhodes. He said
he had been up the Zambezi with others prospecting for gold, and
had met with considerable success, but had found it difficult to
work with the Portuguese and the natives. He was on his way to
Quilimane, and asked the Doctor to travel with him to the coast.
The Doctor was only too glad. Rhodes beguiled the tedium of the
voyage with stories of his college days and roving experiences, and
spoke much of Cecil, then an Oxford student of uncertain health
who, between sessions, had come out to South Africa. " He has
the idea of settling at Kimberley with the law as a profession, but
he sees great opportunities of making money by amalgamating the
various rival mining interests." Many of these plans were sketched
to the Doctor, who, in later years, was interested in watching how
what seemed to the brother to be visionary schemes were gradually
developed in Lower Africa.

To reach Quilimane they had to disembark and transport their
boats and equipment across a tract of country from 3 to 4 miles
wide, to the Qua Qua, a narrow river, picturesquely tropical in its
upper part, where it was fringed by palms and overhung with
thick vegetation, festooned by coloured convoluli, amongst which
the monkeys scampered, but bare and muddy and much affected
by the tides in its lower reaches. The night before reaching the
Portuguese port the current set so strongly against them that they

TWO STRANGERS ON THE RIVER 109

were forced to tie up to the bank. As dusk came on, with a drizzling
rain, two canoes were noticed moving rapidly up the river. One was
about 30 feet long with a thatched covering amidship. A native
clad in jacket stood in the bows.

" That looks like a European turn-out," said Laws.

At the same moment he heard the native cry, " English boat ! "
and saw a white man jump up and look back and then sign for the
canoe to turn. It swept round and came alongside, and the white
man spoke:

" I am James Stewart, a Civil Engineer in the Indian Public
Works Department, on my way to Lake Nyasa."

" This is Dr. Laws," said Rhodes, " and he has just come down."

" I am going to Quilimane," added the Doctor, " and you had
better wait and go back with me; you won't be any sooner going
now. It's a long journey to take alone, and I shall be glad of your
company."

Stewart agreed and explained his object in making for Nyasa.
Son of the pre-Disruption minister of Kirkmichael and a cousin of
Dr. Stewart, he was in charge of a section of the Sirhind Canal in the
Punjab. When Dr. Stewart gave his Livingstonia address in the
General Assembly in 1874 he had read the report and, like Dr. Laws,
had said, " That is a possible field of future work for me." He was
unable then to offer his services, but when his furlough was due he
decided to spend it in Africa with the Mission.

Laws was greatly attracted by this quiet, capable, warm-hearted
man. On the camp table in the hut which they both occupied a
book lay open. It was Stewart's Bible, well-thumbed, with an
inscription by his mother upon it. Laws thanked God for such a
colleague.

In the course of their talk Stewart told him that, not long
before, a slave dhow landed a cargo of two hundred slaves on an
island on the east coast, a barren and waterless spot. Owing to a
sudden storm the dhow was compelled to sail without the slaves,
but arranged for another to pick them up. It never came. When
a ship called some time after, two hundred skeletons were found
bleaching on the shore.

At Quilimane Isaac Wauchope passed out of the Doctor's hands.
On his arrival in South Africa his story of sin was proved to be a
delusion; he recovered, did good service in South Africa, and
eventually, as a native chaplain, lost his life in the foundering of
the transport Mendi during the European War.

no LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XXII. A Terrible Night

Laws and Stewart left Quilimane on 8th January 1877 with a
small fleet of boats and canoes. A week was spent paddling and
poling along the Qua Qua. When the tide turned they usually
ran on sandbanks, and the two white men had to be carried ashore
and remain there until the boats were sucked out of the slime and
dragged into deep water. At night they camped in grass booths
on the banks. On the swampy stretch between the rivers, the
Doctor's crew — who had never been at the coast before — became
ill, and the rest grew discouraged and discontented, and open mutiny
followed. The Doctor was patient but firm. Four days passed
before he carried his point, but the delay in pestiferous surroundings
did its work; he also went down with fever and was unable to
shake it off.

On the Zambezi the strong current again and again baffled the
boats. They hugged the bank and crept round the curves, but
were continually seized by the swirling water and swept back.
The only hope was to keep in the shallows, but this again grounded
them on the shoals. Laws was too ill to direct operations, though
at Shupanga he struggled up and went ashore to show Stewart the
grave of Mrs. Livingstone; on re-starting he was in a state of
collapse.

A sudden squall burst upon the boats, parting them, and the
Doctor found himself alone. The wind roared across the fiats and
the rain descended in torrents. Unable to sit up, he lay on his
back on a mattress at the stern, steering as best he could with the
tiller ropes. The storm grew so violent that the boat was rushed
to the lee of an island, where the crew held on to the reeds until the
blasts moderated. By this time darkness was approaching and
the Doctor was becoming worse. He looked longingly at the
teapot, but all the provisions were in the other boat and there was
no food or drink to give him. The men declaring that they saw a
village on the opporite side of the river, he bade them paddle
towards it. When they reached the bank the night had fallen,
starless and black, and no huts were visible. All the crew, including
" Old Man," one of the original pilots of the Ilala, scrambled ashore
and disappeared.

In the damp darkness the sick man lay alone. He was soaked,
sick, vomiting, suffering from dysentery, tortured by mosquitoes,
wretched with a wretchedness beyond words.

A TERRIBLE NIGHT m

By and by he heard the patter of feet, then some one slid down
the bank and entered the boat and felt for the recumbent form.
It was " Old Man." He had scoured the district, secured three
sweet potatoes, roasted them, and came running with them, hot
and appetizing, to tempt the patient. The kindly act touched the
Doctor to the quick; he essayed to eat the food, but in vain;
he could only thank the black man for his goodness and lie patiently
through the long hours. The air was still again after the storm.
Mysterious noises encompassed him: some he knew — the lapping
of the water on the sides of the boat, the grunting of a hippo,
the stealthy movement of a crocodile, the rush of some scared night
fowl, and farther off the roaring of a lion; others belonged to the
unknown and were the more disturbing. But the Doctor was too
ill to care. It was the most miserable night of his life. He was
only kept from despair by the thought, " God lives and He loves;
my father lives and he prays."

Early next morning the journey was resumed, and in the after-
noon the boat drew up at the landing-stage of Senhora Maria's
house. Stewart was there. The Doctor shouted to him that he
had been very ill. Stewart evidently did not hear, and came and
stood over him.

" 111 — very ill," Laws exclaimed in what he thought was a loud
voice.

" Eh ? What ? " said Stewart, and bent over to listen to what
was in reality a faint whisper.

"Go to the Senhora and ask her if I can stay at her house until
I am a little better."

The Senhora was absent at Senna, but the daughter, for whom
the Doctor had prescribed on the pioneer journey, sent down a
machila, opened up a large annexe, provided a bed with sheets and
pillows, and did all she could think of for his comfort. Bitter days
and nights followed. He drifted into delirium. Through his dis-
ordered brain swept scenes of the past: he was a student again,
studying conic sections and wrestling with problems, and was found
drawing imaginary curves with his feet on the wall. Mind and
body grew infinitely wearied. One night there rang through the
room the cry:

" Sam, Sam, bring me my revolver ! "

At the first words Sam, the attendant, lying on the mat in the
corner, jumped up, but hearing the request discreetly remained
silent. The quavering appealing voice spoke again:

" Sam, I want my revolver ! "

ii2 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Sam pretended to be asleep, and the voice wandered on. Pres-
ently there came in quieter tones:

" Sam, a drink of water."

The boy was on his feet in an instant and brought the cooling
draught.

On a slumberous afternoon the Doctor looked up at Stewart
sitting beside him with quiet, anxious face; he was nursing the
patient with all the gentle tenderness of a woman.

" Read me the Church of England service," he whispered, and
Stewart did so; and the measured beauty of the diction, and
sequence of petition, seemed to calm the sorely distraught brain.

Then began a perilous descent into coma. Struggling against
the tendency he asked Stewart to obtain mustard and apply blisters
to his neck and back and calves of his legs. Stewart thought the
cure too drastic, but the Doctor insisted and he proved to be right.
The deathly lethargy left him and profuse perspiration set in to an
extent hardly credible to those who had never experienced fever,
the moisture soaking through the mattress and dripping to the
floor. During his convalescence an unusual commotion occurred
in the courtyard ; he learnt afterwards that a gang of thirty slaves,
many of them children, and all thin and sickly, had arrived, but
as soon as the slave-drivers were aware of the presence of " the
English " they decamped.

When Senhora Maria returned she too went down with fever.
On hearing this the Doctor rose, put on a dressing-gown, a pair of
slippers, and a helmet, and, upheld by Sam on one side and a local
native on the other, he crossed the courtyard and paid her a pro-
fessional visit.

When the voyage was resumed Stewart busied himself preparing
dainties for the invalid, and Laws pointed out the spots of interest.
Their first walk was to the graves of Bishop Mackenzie, Scudamore,
and Dickinson.

" A queer country this," remarked Stewart, " where the only
places worth going to see are graves."

" Yes," replied Laws, " but they are the milestones of civiliza-
tion towards the regions beyond."

Not being fit for the march along the cataracts the Doctor was
carried in a machila, but in the cooler temperature of the hills he
rapidly recovered. At Pembi he found a letter nailed to the wall
of the old hut; it was from Dr. Stewart, saying he was higher up
with Henderson. Then a boat came round the bend of the river.
Crack went the Doctor's revolver, and back came a rifle shot;

A View of the Lake Shore, showing how the Huts are spread
along the Beach

Five Chiefs who met Dr. Livingstone when he first landed at Bandawe
They are standing at the spot where he came ashore

The First Exploring Journey: A Halt by the Way

The Ngoni Embassy to Bandawe (p. 195)
Dr. Laws in the front row

A TERRIBLE NIGHT 113

it was Macfadyen in the dinghy, which conveyed them all to the
llala.

" It is like coming home," the Doctor said, " and glad I am to
be on board."

" We don't joke much in Africa," remarked Henderson, " but
when we heard the tale of the Doctor's illness we teased him on
choosing so suitable a place in which to be ill." Henderson had
come to beseech Laws to proceed forthwith to Blantyre; but the
latter maintained that Stewart, as the man of wider experience,
should go first, and that meantime they should return to Living-
stonia, and this was agreed to.

All the way up the river, despite his illness, the Doctor had been
thinking of the interests of the Mission and collecting live stock and
plants. He bought ten head of cattle at £3 each, and after infinite
trouble managed to get three calves and a bull to Cape Maclear.
He dreaded the tsetse fly, but hoped for the best. A number of
dogs were also taken up. Some young mango trees were obtained
at Shupanga, and pine-apple plants at Senhora Maria's, and these,
taking hold at Blantyre and Livingstonia, were the progenitors of
all others in the Nyasa region. It was ten years, however, before
the mangoes bore. He also carried 300 cocoa-nuts, which were
planted at Cape Maclear. Of these eighty sprouted, but thirty-
three years passed before they yielded their first fruit. The Cape
had now become a sort of nursery for new plants, with which the
Doctor was constantly experimenting.

Other freight there was, more difficult to handle, in the shape of
a cargo of boys. To his delight Chipatula and Masao had been
persuaded to hand over a number of their sons to be educated at
Livingstonia. " God," he wrote, " is answering my prayer: ' Send
me to the Makololo.' " Even if these lads — none of whom had
reached the age of twelve — did not become Christians, the training
they would receive, he believed, would fit them better for their
future positions. They brought with them a retinue of twenty
servants, over whom they had absolute power; they were, indeed,
expected to kill one occasionally in order to become accustomed
to blood and death. All were undisciplined. Three, becoming
home-sick, beat their slaves, and ran off, but were pursued and
ignominiously carried back. Another attempted to escape by
jumping overboard. " Yet," the Doctor wrote, " I do love these
little ones, even the roughest of them; when they come up so
confidingly it is impossible not to be drawn to them." With the
advent of these lads the boarding department of the Mission began.
8

ii4 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Their slave-servants were a problem: the Doctor did not like
them hanging about, and put them into the school. Many elected
to remain permanently, and of two, Albert Namalambe and Mvula,
we shall hear more.

Industrial work was also instituted, the ordinary schoolboys
being employed for an hour or two on outdoor tasks, such as making
roads or cleaning the paths, while the sons of the chiefs went into
the carpenter's shop. Thrice a week now, also, all the workers,
of every class, were gathered together and taught regarding the
articles they saw used or worn by the Europeans.

" How is it," the Doctor was once asked, " that the English
know all these things ? "

He showed them the Bible and said the secret lay there. " Our
ancestors were as rude and ignorant as you are, but they obeyed
the Book, and not only got peace in their hearts but prospered in
outward things as well."

XXIII. Three Deaths

The first months of 1877 can be summed up in the words of the
Doctor: " Our work is progressing slowly, silently, but surely.
The people trust us and are gathering about us." Beyond Otter
Point a village had been established, and the women were coming
occasionally with produce for sale: their presence was due largely
to the confidence they placed in the Doctor, and was a notable
stage in the development of the Mission. " I am extremely busy,"
he wrote at this time, " and could I be in fifty places at once I
should find no lack of something to keep me employed." When
not attending to the needs of the Station he was sailing in the
Ilala in quest of provisions and met with many adventures. A
breakdown once occurred off a rocky part of the coast and the
steamer had to be towed laboriously to harbour by the dinghy,
a shovel being used as a paddle, and a boat-hook with piece of
canvas stretched over a frame serving as an oar. Although there
was considerable anxiety involved in the work there was also a
measure of romance which appealed to his aesthetic side. He saw
the Lake in all its moods — when it was asleep in the hush of the
dawn and when it glittered in the moonlight; when it lay motion-
less in windless calm and when it was as tempestuous as the Atlantic
— and the greater his intimacy with it became the more he came
under its spell and loved it.

For a time Dr. Stewart was seriously ill, having various turns

THREE DEATHS 115

of fever, which he persisted in calling by some other name and
fought with dogged resolution. All admired his pluck, but the
hour came when he had to give in, call Dr. Laws, who was engaged
in building a powder magazine, and say, " You can put me down
for seven days of thoroughly bad fever." " When Dr. Stewart
admits that he is ill, then he is ill indeed," remarked the perspiring
Laws, which proved to be the case. The attack left him in a state
of extreme weakness and delayed his visit to Blantyre until the
end of March, when he and his cousin proceeded there, Laws remain-
ing at the Cape.

The next patient was Shadrach, to whom the Doctor had become
much attached: few men in the Station showed more of the spirit
of Christianity in his daily life. He was a victim to consumption
and at times suffered from severe mental depression. Plans were
made for sending him back to South Africa.

"I will go to Quilimane with him," said Black; "it is my
turn."

" But you are not so strong as I am," declared Laws, " and you
must not risk it. What of your fiancee if anything happened to
you ? I could never look her in the face."

There was, unhappily, no need for the friendly rivalry. Dr.
Black one day felt feverish. He had intended accompanying the
Doctor on one of his foraging trips, and asked to be called when
all was ready. The Doctor went along and found him in bed
reading his Bible. " I do not think you should go," Laws said.
" You will be running a needless risk. Stay and rest."

" All right ; I will do what you think best . . . you won't be
long away ? "

" I shall not stay an hour longer than I can help."

Two days later, at sunset, the Doctor returned, and found the
patient suffering from hsemoglobinuric, or blackwater fever. He
was drowsy and vomiting. " I am awfully glad you are back," he
said, and sank into delirium. Laws and Dr. Macklin from Blantyre,
who was at Livingstonia on a visit, Mr. Cotterill, and all the mem-
bers of the staff, did their utmost for him. Laws sat continuously
at his bedside, but his devotion was unrewarded, and on 7th May
Black passed away. Next day, on the shoulders of his colleagues,
he was borne across the plain to the foot of the hills, where at the
base of a gigantic boulder of smooth granite he was laid to rest.
A bronze tablet and medallion riveted to the rock still shows
up clear and sharp amidst the surrounding tangle of vegetation,
and the words " Faithful unto Death " summarizes to the infrequent

n6 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

visitor the brief career of this gallant pioneer. To Laws the loss
of such a loyal friend was a grievous blow, and it was some time
ere he rallied from the shock. Already due to relieve the Stewarts
at Blantyre, he hastened there and found Henderson gone. It was
not possible now to carry out the original plan, and both Dr. Stewart
and Laws returned to Livingstonia, leaving James Stewart to super-
intend the Mission on the hills.

Shortly afterwards Shadrach ruptured a blood vessel during a
fit of coughing, and died from congestion of the lungs. He, too,
was buried at the foot of the granite boulder. " He has been the
most useful of the Kafirs," wrote the Doctor. " Possibly our hopes
were too much set upon him and the service he would be to the
Mission." Then with his uncanny prevision he added: " The
apparently less efficient ones may be the ones God sees to be best
fitted for His work." He referred to Koyi, who now took Shad-
rach's place.

A third death followed, that of John Mackay, a boatman in the
service of the Blantyre Mission who, suffering from consumption,
had come with Macklin for a change. Laws sat with him to the
end, which came one morning at dawn, and he was buried by the
side of the others.

These events created an uneasy feeling in Scotland regarding
the site of the Mission, although only one was attributable to the
climate. The Doctor refuted the idea that the Expedition had
chosen unwisely. " Cape Maclear," he wrote, " was certainly the
best place to select, placed as we were on entering the Lake." But
the question of a better site had never been shelved; plans had
already been made for a long tour in search of a healthier spot, if
possible on a high elevation, and with a cool climate. " We can
establish it this year," said the Doctor confidently, " and have the
buildings well under way before the rains begin." What was
chiefly influencing him was not the matter of health but the dis-
covery that the tsetse fly infested the plain. The bull and three
calves and all the dogs had died one after the other, and the Doctor
had no doubt that a little brown fly found near the Station was
the dreaded scourge. To Dr. MacGill, the Secretary of the Foreign
Mission Committee of the United Presbyterian Church, he wrote:

" The results of the presence of this insignificant creature are:

(a) No domestic animals that can be used as beasts of burden
can live here.

(b) Industrial operations are seriously impeded, many quite
obstructed.

BLACK IVORY 117

(c) Our usefulness in advancing the civilization of Africa is so
much curtailed that :

(d) A new site for Livingstonia must be sought for.

But this must not be done in a hurry. Time and toil must be
spent in searching for the best possible place."

In view of the work involved in establishing the new Station
the members of the first party were asked to prolong their engage-
ment for another year; they had proved themselves men of sterling
character, were hard workers, could speak the language a little,
and knew the habits of the natives. All consented except Johnston,
the Doctor's staunch and loyal comrade, who had never quite
rallied after the privations of the first year, and wished to return
to study medicine.

XXIV. Black Ivory

Four problems, all difficult and perplexing, confronted the
Doctor.

The first was presented by the slave trade, which, despite con-
tinuous pressure exerted by the British Government at Zanzibar,
continued to flourish. Although the Sultan was in earnest in
seeking to stop the traffic he had little control over his subjects in
the interior. The presence of the Ilala on the Lake had, for a
time, some effect, caravans arriving at the coast reporting that
it had disorganized operations; but when it was discovered that
nothing but moral force was to be used, the trade was actively
resumed.

Beyond that range of hill country which the Doctor saw radiant
with the dawn, or darkly silhouetted against the sunset, were wide
haunts of terror where a Chief sold a man or a woman for a piece of
calico or a handful of salt. Mr. Cotterill in his journeys repeatedly
came upon gangs of slaves, mostly young people, and all half-
starved; one band was in charge of a son of Mponda. On the
slave paths he often saw the newly-dead bodies of those who had
fallen out. Not far to the south of the Station a hundred victims
one day crossed the Lake; an ailing child who could not be quieted
was taken by the slave-driver and flung into the bush. It was
picked up by a lad who had been at work at the Station and had a
glimmering of Christ-love, and he carried it to the village, where it
was cared for but eventually died. So well was the trade thriving
that Makanjira had started to build more large dhows to cope
with it. The Doctor felt his impotence as a messenger of peace.

n8 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" What we want," he said, " is a small English gunboat and a score
of trained men — that would stop the trade."

What he could do within the limits of the restrictions imposed
by the Home Committee he did. It was natural that the natives
in their despair and panic should seek the protection of the Mission.
A man whose friends were sold to the dealers and who feared the
same fate for himself fled from his village and appealed for shelter.
It was given. Another who had been wronged by his Chief came
with his family. The news spread in the rapid way peculiar to
Africa, and Livingstonia became a city of refuge. One morning
at dawn a native arrived, saying that he and twenty-one men,
women, and children had been marked down to be sold by Mpemba ;
but friends put them on their guard and they escaped by night in
a large canoe, but were wrecked on a rocky island. Patching up
the canoe he had left in the darkness, alone, and had managed to
reach the Station. The Ilala was at once dispatched for the others.

According to native law these runaways ought to have been
returned to their Chiefs, but there was not a single member of the
staff willing to carry out such a requirement. What the Doctor
did was to investigate the circumstances, and if he found the fugi-
tives innocent of any offence he allowed them to remain. At first
no notice was taken by the Chiefs of the matter, but by and by
one arrived claiming some slaves who had been tracked to the
Station. The Doctor brought them in.

" Have you any charge against them ? " he asked the Chief.

" No."

Turning to the men, he said, " Do you wish to return to your
village ? "

" No ! " emphatically; " we shall be sold if we do."

" Then," said the Doctor to the Chief, " they are free, and I warn
you not to attempt to seize them forcibly. In order to do so you
will first require to kill me and every white man on the place."

Another case was that of a woman who had been sold as a
little girl, and resold and bartered several times. Then she was
handed to the Arabs for cloth, but her child was retained. Escaping
from the caravan she hid in the bush until danger was past. Love
for her child drew her back to her master, who again sold her.
Some vague rumour of the English city of refuge reached her, and
she arranged with a man-slave to escape with him as his wife.
Her master, the father of her child, traced her to the Station. At a
court of inquiry she related how she had been cruelly treated and
made to drink mwave twice because her husband accused her of

56 yards of calico.

f-JO " "

J 32

14 "

24 " "
40 "

4 «
2 "

for the baby

BLACK IVORY 119

being a man-eater. The latter acknowledged this and had nothing
against her except that she had run away. The Doctor lectured
him on the sin of slave-holding and kept the woman on the Station.
One day a refugee of a superior type was brought in by Mlolo,
and from the information both supplied, the Doctor compiled a
list of the current prices of slaves on the Lake:
A young girl at school, unmarried .
A young woman with baby unweaned .

A strong young wife, without children .
A strong young man having good teeth,
An old man, not very strong .
A toothless old man

The Doctor had been studying the general situation and had
come to a clear understanding of the factors underlying the trade.
It was based, not on the will of the people, but on the need of the
Chiefs and headmen. To the Chiefs it had become a matter of
necessity to obtain guns, gunpowder, cloth, beads, and brass wire.
These were the only imports into Central Africa, and they were
brought by traders who were, as a rule, not pure Arabs but
Swahilis, natives with a greater or less infusion of Arab blood, as
well as half-caste Portuguese. Both acted for the wealthy merchants
at the coast and were vicious with all the viciousness of Eastern
seaport towns, satanic spirits who had been the curse of Africa for
centuries. The imports had to be bought by exports, and the sole
articles the country produced, the sole articles which the coastmen
would accept for their merchandise, were white and black ivory —
elephant tusks and human bodies. As a rule one would not be
purchased without the other, for tusks would not have paid without
free transport, and slaves added to their own value by acting as
porters. Unable to devise any other alternative the Chiefs, with
the simple logic of fatalism, accepted the position. In course
of time the traffic had hardened into custom, and custom had
become right, as it does in more civilized regions of the world.

The men who were responsible, therefore, were not the Chiefs
so much as the traders and other agents whose procedure was
invariably the same: they would enter the territory of a powerful
Chief, become friendly and toady to his weaknesses, and supply
him with what he wanted. When they had secured all the avail-
able tusks they touched his cupidity by offering him more if he
would give carriers to convey them to the coast. He would then
dispose of any of his own people he wished to get rid of, or those
held in pledge for debt or had been kidnapped in war; but more

120 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

often he would raid the outlying villages of another tribe, who would
retaliate. In this way the whole country was the scene of per-
petual slave drives, followed by reprisals and larger warfare. A
general feeling of insecurity prevailed. The advent of an armed
Arab or two paralysed a community; the people crept about filled
with suspicion and foreboding; no woman would go for water
alone in case she was snapped up, children never wandered far
from their huts; cultivations were neglected, only sufficient crops
being grown to keep away starvation, for what availed industry
when one might at any moment be seized and yoked and marched
off to the coast ?

Thinking over the situation the Doctor came to the same con-
clusion as Dr. Livingstone. If ivory continued to be the principal
export legitimate traders would not be able to compete with the
Arabs so long as the latter obtained cheap human transport. New
native industries must therefore be established to provide payment
for the imports; the economic status of the people must be raised
to a much higher level. His mind turned to cotton as the likeliest
product. The natives already grew a small quantity, but the price
was higher than its real value. If a market were begun at Living-
stonia more would soon be planted and the price be reduced and an
export trade created. Other products, beeswax, rubber, iron, and
tin, all of which he had seen, would follow. This implied a trading
store at the Station, and he planned a suitable building and wrote
to friends in Scotland to arrange for a five years' supply of calico
to foster his scheme of cotton cultivation.

He was aware that such a project might shock the sensibilities
of people at home and arouse opposition. " It may seem," he
wrote to Dr. MacGill, " to be an alarming proposal to come from a
missionary, and you may ask if I was sent out here to be a trader ?
As a trader seeking to fill my own pockets, certainly not, but as
one buying and selling food for ourselves and the boys I am daily
compelled to be." He was, in fact, a market-man on a large scale;
he had now a population of over a hundred to feed, and had to
range far and wide for provisions. On one journey he brought from
Makanjira's:

Fowls, 75. Pumpkins, 80.

Maize (green), 1870 lb. Rice, 104 lb.

" (dried), 700 lb. Ground-nuts, 40 lb.

Mapira and Kafir corn, 700 lb.

And in a single year he had expended 15 miles of calico for all
purposes.

THE WILD NGONI 121

" One requires to be on the spot to realize the necessity for a store," he
continued to Dr. MacGill. " Picture our position. We are set down in the
midst of a rude people who would be glad to get clothes to wear, but there is
no supply within their reach. They have proved themselves willing to work
and work hard that they may obtain a few yards of calico, but they have
nothing with which to purchase other kinds of goods for which a definite
price is required. With a little encouragement from us they would procure
this in course of time. Are we to supply it or are we to stand aside and say,
' The people who sent us here tell us to buy food from you because we cannot
do without it, but to buy the things you bring to send home as the price of
the calico, shirts, knives, or spoons you wish, would be soiling our fingers and
staining the holy garments of Christian prejudice in the country from which
we have come ' ? . . . No one has complained of the manual work I have
done: I have hauled ropes, driven an engine, sawed wood, while a medical
missionary at home or in India would have been making pills or writing ser-
mons. The nature of the case not only justifies but renders such conduct
necessary."

XXV. The Wild Ngoni

Into the slow, sullen movement of village existence came
another agony, the swift, arrow-like Ngoni raid — a savage war-chant
in the night, blazing huts, spear-thrusts, frenzied slaughter, and a
rapid ebb of naked warriors laden with maize, cattle, and goats,
and every boy and girl they could lay hands upon.

This was the second problem. Bad as it seemed to be, it was
an evil with which the Doctor thought he could cope: it meant
a policy of conciliation, of the establishment of strategic positions
along the Lake coast, then a cautious and peaceful penetration
into the highlands behind. The first step was to come into touch
with these wild hill-folk, and he was planning an early visit when
one day to his astonishment a Ngoni minor chief or headman and
his followers appeared at the Station. They had heard of the
wonders of the place and had ventured down on a friendly visit.

Realizing the importance of the occasion the Doctor laid himself
out to please and attract them. He was greatly taken with their
fine physical development, their manly and independent bearing,
and their courtesy. Of their history he already knew something,
but it was from them that he gathered the first definite details of
their tribal movements. The Ngoni were strangers in Central
Africa, of Zulu origin, part of that great stream of migrants which
was set in motion by the colossal operations of Chaka, whose career
of wholesale massacre shook Southern Africa to its foundations in
the beginning of the nineteenth century. Crossing the Zambezi,
various divisions traversed Central Africa as far north as Lake

122 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Tanganyika, plundering and murdering, with intervals of settlement,
during which they subjugated the weaker tribes around them and
incorporated the young men into their fighting regiments. They
finally occupied the ranges of hills on the east and west sides of
Lake Nyasa, those on the east becoming the intractable Mangwang-
wara, those on the west the fierce Ngoni under Chikusi in the
south and Mombera in the north. It was these foreign soldiers
of fortune whom, under the names of Mavite and Mazitu, Living-
stone encountered so often during his travels in the Nyasa region.
He was impressed by their qualities and their opposition to the
tactics of the Arab slavers — for they did not to any extent engage
in the foreign traffic — and believed they could be made the best
allies of the British.

The visitors, who were followers of Chikusi, still spoke with the
Zulu click, though some of the younger men used Chinyanja.
William Koyi, the Lovedale native, was called, and conversed freely
with them in the Zulu tongue. The Doctor instantly grasped the
enormous importance of this fact. Koyi in his eyes became thence-
forward one of the most valuable members of the staff; he would
be able to take up work at once amongst the hillmen, and other
Lovedale workers would follow. He was overjoyed at the prospect
opening up, and asked the headman if he would receive a teacher.
The reply was a warm invitation to come up and settle amongst
them. The Doctor saw, however, that such men would be more
difficult to instruct and train than the softer and weaker tribes in
the plains, but once " cut and polished " they would, like his own
Aberdeen granite, stand the weathering of both sunshine and storm.

He conducted them round the Station. With the dispensary
and the rows of medicine bottles they were deeply impressed. In
view of their bloodthirsty reputation the Doctor thought it well to
show them a rifle and revolver, and how they were discharged,
and were able to hit a small object at a distance. They, however,
denied that many of the exploits of which he had heard were the
work of the pure Ngoni. These had their regular campaigns, as
they had always had, to exact food-tribute from conquered peoples
with richer land, but many of the isolated raids and murders, they
contended, were committed by lawless bands, the scum of the tribes
whom they had absorbed. Without expressing any opinion on the
point the Doctor noted this explanation to guide him in the future.
He told them of the desire of the English to live at peace in the
land, of their hatred of slavery, and of the Divine law that all should
do to others as they would have others do to them; entertained

AN EXPERT CRIMINAL 123

them royally on the best resources of the Station, and supplied
them with shirts, blankets, beads, snuff-boxes, and plants of various
kinds for their gardens in the hills.

XXVI. An Expert Criminal

The third problem was the question of civil jurisdiction. A
large community now lived under the protection of the Mission,
and with such a rude and undisciplined people offences of one kind
or another inevitably occurred. Thieving was common, and graver
crime might be committed and require to be dealt with. The
Doctor early realized the anomalous position in which he was
placed. He was settled in a barbarous country where there was
no central authority to dispense justice. In his general relation
to the native he was guided by the stringent rules handed to him
on leaving Scotland; but he had to adopt some policy regarding
the disputes and misdemeanours brought to him to settle. Blantyre
was not troubled by any doubts on the subject. Instructions from
Scotland impressed upon the staff that the Station was a little
republic in which offenders against law and order should be punished
according to the character of their crime. It was held that some
such right was absolutely necessary, otherwise the colony would
become demoralized, and the work frustrated.

The Doctor thought the matter carefully out. " While," he
said, " we do not depend for our safety on Snider rifles but on
Him who holds us in His hand, it will not do to let these people
do as they think fit, for in that case property and life itself would
not be secure. It is a difficult question, because the natives require
to be dealt with with a firmness which to those at home would seem
harsh, and there is always within one's breast a strife between
justice and forgiveness. Firmness once shown, however, comes
to be expected, and the occasions for adopting it become fewer
and fewer. But I have no wish to begin to burn native villages as
part of my mission in Africa." What he resolved to do was to
adopt native law, to have natives hear the evidence, and to make
them award the punishment, reserving to himself the right of veto
should this prove cruel or excessive.

The Committee in Scotland had not lost sight of the matter, and
about the same time again brought it before the Government and
solicited their aid in perfecting the work that had been begun.
" We earnestly beg the protection of Government for the Mission.
We believe that protection will not be sufficient without the presence

i24 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

at Livingstonia of an accredited agent of the British Government
invested with adequate authority." But Lord Derby could hold
out no hope of such an appointment, although he intimated that
" the Government would be at all times ready to use whatever
influence they might possess " to protect the Mission.

Late one night the Doctor was turning in when some of the
Makololo boys appeared with the report that they had discovered
some large pieces of stolen cloth in the bag of one Zandea, who had
come with Ramo-Ku-Kan's sons. After the other white men had
been roused a court of inquiry was held, at which it was decreed
that the culprit should be apprehended. Arming themselves, the
party proceeded to the hut where he was sleeping. Beside him
on his mat lay a long knife belonging to Gunn. He was roused,
bound, and led to the dining-hall, where he confessed to the theft
and to others. It then came out that he had been guilty of serious
crimes in his village, and had escaped by passing himself off as
one of the servants sent up to the Cape. With the concurrence
of the natives the Doctor decided to send him back to Ramo-Ku-
Kan. The prisoner was horrorstruck, for the sentence was one of
death. Nothing but a strong sense of duty induced the Doctor
to pronounce it, but it was essential for the security and peace of
the Station that stealing should be put down.

The Ilala was at the time weather-bound on the east side of the
peninsula, and the Doctor and Gunn tramped with the prisoner
across the plain and over the hills, but were unsuccessful in finding
the vessel. They camped in a grass shelter and returned next day.
Riddel and Gunn then started to convey Zandea across to another
bay, where the steamer was said to be lying. On the way he gave
them the slip and disappeared into the bush. Search parties were
dispatched in all directions and he was tracked, caught, and brought
back. The native residents now clamoured for his death, but to
this the Doctor would not agree. A strong chain was fastened
round each of his legs, and when it was found that he had nearly
released himself, handcuffs made of loop iron bolted together were
added. One night, wrenching off a nut with his teeth and breaking
the padlocks of the chain, he set himself free.

Before clearing off he raided the various buildings and stole a
miscellaneous assortment of articles, including clothes, tools, dishes,
and a loaded revolver from the bed of one of the staff. It was the
Doctor's custom to make a tour of inspection of the Station every
night with a lantern: that night, providentially, he refrained.
Zandea slipped down to the beach, pushed a canoe into the Lake,

THE LAND OF THE GO-NAKEDS 125

loaded her up with his spoils, and paddled away into the darkness.
At 1 a.m. his absence was discovered, and the alarm given, and a
pursuit organized, but without result. Some days later news came
from a friendly village beyond the hills that he was there and would
be seized and detained. Johnston and Riddel and a party, all
well armed, marched to the village and brought him to the Station.

How to secure so expert a criminal was a problem. It was
solved by constructing stocks into which his feet were secured,
while at night his arms were placed behind his back and a pair of
stouter handcuffs fastened on his wrists. Then to Ramo-Ku-Kan
a message was sent. " What do you want done in the matter ? "
Back came the reply, " Send him to me." Well guarded, he was
marched to the beach and taken on board the Ilala, which con-
veyed him to what the Doctor thought was his doom. . . . On
the river he escaped — handcuffs and all— and gained his freedom.

The fourth problem was caused by the occupation of the coast
and lower Zambezi by the Portuguese and their obstructive methods
and political ambitions. There was no clear understanding between
them and the British Government, and their disposition was to do
nothing themselves and to impede others who wished to open up
the interior. They levied excessive duties on goods for the Lake,
were dilatory in business matters, and, with several honourable
exceptions, were not characterized by the highest commercial
integrity. The Doctor found this problem a source of continual
irritation and trouble.

XXVII. The Land of the Go-Nakeds

Preparations for the journey in search of a new site were going
on when an intimation was received that Captain Elton, the British
Consul at Mozambique, was on his way up the river with the object
of inquiring into slaving operations in the Nyasa region, and then
marching from the north end of the Lake to Zanzibar. He was
also, at the request of the Foreign Office, to report on Livingstonia,
the staff of which were asked to afford him all needed assistance.
This news delayed the execution of the plan decided on, and it was
proposed to combine the prospecting tour with the conveyance of
Captain Elton to the head of the Lake.

The Consul arrived in August, with Messrs. Rhodes, Hoste,
Downie, and Cotterill. As he walked to the Station he saw some
waggon ruts on the roadway. " Are these wheel marks ? " he
said. " If they are it is more than we have had at Mozambique

126 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

even after two centuries." He was much impressed by the civilized
appearance and general neatness of the Station, the number of the
whitewashed buildings — fifteen in all — and the busy and contented
population of boys in their clean cotton shirts. He inspected the
school and gardens and grain-fields. " I am," he said, " charmed
with what the Mission has done, for I know the difficulties that
have had to be contended against." During his stay the first
industrial exhibition was held, the manufactures being straw hats,
bags, mats, and pottery, and he presented the prizes to the successful
workers.

The Consul's following was a large one and the whole could not
be accommodated on the Ilala if the Livingstonia party were also
to travel in her, and it was therefore arranged that a number
should be left at Cape Maclear and that Dr. Laws should return
for them in three weeks' time. The steamer sailed on 17th Sep-
tember 1877, the Livingstonia contingent consisting of Dr. Stewart,
Dr. Laws, Macfadyen, Simpson, Crooks, and Koyi, with half a
dozen of the Station natives. There were altogether twenty-eight
souls on board the tiny steamer, besides a large quantity of baggage,
calico, and stores, and each night a number had, when practicable,
to sleep on shore.1

Dr. Laws was in charge of the sailing arrangements and experi-
enced an anxious and difficult time. On the 19th the boiler began
to prime and it became necessary to anchor at twilight in Lake
Chia, south of Kota Kota. After the shore party had landed the
wind freshened from the south. Dr. Stewart had the first watch;
Dr. Laws the second. The latter lay down, but feeling restless did
not sleep. As the wind developed he rose, got the awning down,
and strengthened the fires. Waves were now breaking, the anchors
began to drag, and the vessel drifted slowly towards some black
rocks to leeward. Then, with a suddenness characteristic of lake
storms, the wind increased to hurricane force and the waves dashed
over the vessel. Knowing that Hoste was an officer of the Union
Steam Packet Company, Laws without hesitation turned over the
command of the Ilala to him.

Hoste's first order was " Up anchors." Having become en-
tangled amongst the rocks these could not be moved. " Cut the
cables ! " he cried. The jib-sail was set, full steam was turned on,

1 There are two detailed accounts of this second circumnavigation of the
Lake: one by Dr. Stewart, given to the Royal Geographical Society in March
1879; and the other in the Lakes and Mountains of Eastern and Central
Africa, by Captain Elton, edited by Mr. Cotterill.

THE LAND OF THE GO-NAKEDS 127

and there ensued a life-and-death struggle. For a few moments
the issue was in doubt, but gradually the steam pressure told, and
very slowly the Ilala drew away from the surf-beaten rocks. As
she plunged forward the waves engulfed her, sweeping over the
boiler and flooding the stokehold. Simpson became sick and one
after another the blacks went under, all lying helpless with the
water awash about them. Captain Elton was also violently sick
and suffering from cramp. Laws, who had been at the helm, was
relieved by Crooks and took Macfadyen's place at the engine, but
the smell of the hot oil overcame him, and time and again he was
up vomiting over the side of the vessel. Drenched and exhausted
though he was, he clung to his post. At one time when a tremendous
wave came curling towards the vessel he believed it was the end,
and his thoughts sped homewards, but the Ilala rose like a duck
to the top and glided over. Crooks, at the helm, became so tired
that at one time he fell asleep, for which he was sharply reprimanded
by Dr. Stewart. " But," says Laws, " after battling with wind
and waves for hours the body seems to get worn out and one feels
almost as if he did not care what becomes of one. I think drowning
must be, after all, an easy death."

It was not till the afternoon of the following day that Kota
Kota was reached. Here the shore party rejoined the steamer.
The lost anchors were recovered after a search involving five days'
delay. Dr. Laws found that the Jumbe whom he had met in 1875
was dead and the present ruler was his brother, a Mohammedan
from the coast, with a quiet and thoughtful face. He and the
Doctor had ari argument about the proclamation of the Sultan
of Zanzibar against the slave trade, which Jumbe looked on as a
joke.

" The slave trade is good," he said; " it is my only means of
making a living."

" You can trade in ivory," the Doctor replied.

Jumbe swept his arm round. " Have these people any ivory ? "

" Well, we have come as teachers and have a school — if you
send any of your boys down to us we shall be glad to teach and
train them."

" That I will not do. Look at these."

" These " were three boys who were being taught Arabic.

" What need have they to go ? I do not want them to learn
English."

The Ilala proceeded to Losewa and then to the island of Likomo,
with which the Doctor was less favourably impressed than he had

128 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

been on the previous occasion. He decided to place it outside the
category of possible mission sites. " The west side," he said, " is
best for us, and there is a great country behind." Here a mis-
adventure nearly ended the career of the steamer. A heavy sea
was running and the anchor dragged, and the Doctor decided to
slip it and make for the open. Crooks said he would buoy it, but
on his attempting to do so, the line fouled the propeller, and the
vessel drifted helplessly, stern foremost, towards the shore. The
Doctor rushed the other anchor over, but it failed to grip. Then
some of the crew dived overboard and cut away the rope piece
by piece, until the screw was free. The vessel was already scraping
the sand, but inch by inch it was worked out, though it took two
hours to get clear of danger. The Doctor went down with fever
as a result of the exposure.

A visit was paid to Kitesi, a Chief on the mainland who, in the
presence of his people, promised to be friendly to the English, and
offered the use of Likomo if they wished to settle there. Like
others of the harassed shore men, what he wanted was protection
from the persistent attacks of the Ngoni. Stormy weather obliged
the Ilala to run straight for Florence Bay at the base of Mount
Waller, " a remarkable hill," Captain Elton wrote before reaching
it. Its picturesque appearance, so unlike, with its stratified forma-
tion and beautiful colour effects, the neighbouring hills, attracted
all the party.

Considerable delay was caused here by the illness of Dr. Stewart,
who had blackwater fever, and was landed from the tossing Ilala
and laid in the shade of a tree. Thinking he would not recover
he quietly gave Laws instructions regarding his papers. Captain
Elton remarked, " Dr. Stewart has a great deal of responsibility
about the steamer, of which he, as well as Dr. Laws, should be
relieved. It is not legitimate work, and prevents him concentrating
his attention and care upon subjects of higher importance." The
others had their fill of hunting, the district teeming with elephants,
buffaloes, rhinoceroses, crocodiles, hippos, leopards, lions, and
hyenas. On a swampy shore farther north an immense herd of
elephants was seen — some three hundred in number — sleeping in
the grass or wallowing in the water.

The spot at the north end where the river had been detected in
1875 was again sighted, and the Ilala approached and anchored off
the bar. It was the Rombashi, and, as the Doctor had surmised, it
flowed into the Lake. In the dinghy he went in to explore. He
found 3 fathoms of water and all the promise of a navigable channel.

THE LAND OF THE GO-NAKEDS 129

This meant a safe harbour on the flat, unhospitable coast, and he
returned with a lighter heart. The vessel crossed the bar in 6 feet,
and steamed some distance between low banks of grass, to the con-
sternation of the natives, a section of the Konde tribe, who were
seen hastily driving off their cattle. The course dividing, the Ilala
kept to the broadest arm, but this gradually narrowed until the
vessel was sailing through an avenue of still water with the luxuriant
vegetation arching overhead.

The natives were with difficulty induced to approach, and when
they did ostentatiously exhibited their spears, which had from
four to six barbs on the blades. They were " go-nakeds " : nudity
was the rule with the men, although some affected a plaintain leaf ;
the women wore simply a small bit of bark cloth. Their heads
were shaved and painted with red pigment ; many had their
faces, bodies, and legs similarly adorned ; the women, with arms
and breasts also washed in white, presented a hideous spectacle.
They were the most savage and degraded type of African Laws
had yet seen, though they seemed a pastoral people and had well-
constructed huts. " They are like overgrown children," he wrote,
" but with the passions and power of men unchecked by any moral
influence." He told them about God and His Book, and the pur-
pose of the Mission, but realized that great caution would have to
be observed in dealing with them.

In view of the delay occasioned by the stormy weather Captain
Elton decided not to wait on his second batch of men from Living-
stonia but to proceed at once. Difficulties in regard to carriers
arose, and a considerable quantity of provisions was sent back to
the steamer, much to the dismay of Dr. Stewart and Dr. Laws,
who foresaw that the lack of them would be felt on the journey.
Elton died before reaching the coast, and Cotterill went on to
England. The latter had a modest opinion of the efforts he had
made to introduce commerce into the Lake region, but he was the
pioneer and showed what could be done.

The friendly attitude of the natives changed towards the Ilala
party : various incidents occurred which told the experienced
leaders that a quarrel was being picked, and on one occasion it
was necessary for the Doctor to display his revolver and discharge
it in order to impress an armed band — a hint that the white man
like the lion, had strong teeth and sharp claws, and that it was
best not to provoke him. It was at last deemed prudent to with-
draw. Dr. Laws was loth to leave : the country with its back-
ground of magnificent hills seemed suited for mission work, and he
9

130 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

wished to explore its possibilities ; but he desired before all to
avoid hostilities. " We have," he said, " the satisfaction of knowing
that we have not made the people our enemies, and that further
intercourse with them is not foreclosed by any collision with us.
As they get time to think, and the news of our upright dealing
reaches them from other tribes, they will be the more ready to
welcome us when we return."

On the journey south a minute inspection of the west coast was
made and friendly relations cemented with the Chiefs. They all
complained of the Ngoni who raided them unceasingly and carried
off their cattle and grain, and they asked for war medicine to make
their people strong and brave in battle. The Doctor disclaimed
possessing any potion to impart courage — that lay in a brave heart.
" We will give you cattle and ivory for it," the Chiefs persisted.
" But we really haven't any." Nothing would convince them.
" You do not want to part with it," they said reproachfully.
One old Chief thought he would put the matter to the test. He asked
the Doctors to meet him secretly outside a village at the dead of
night, and when they came pointed to a young bull, tethered to a
tree, and a tusk of ivory on the ground. " I will give you those for
your war medicine," he said. Some Ngoni who had forsaken their
tribe were discovered, and Dr. Laws asked Koyi to talk with them.
They understood him at once. Procuring his New Testament he
read the story of the Prodigal Son. The Doctor watched their
faces, and saw that they took in the meaning. Koyi spoke of his,
and their, old country, and told them how he had been with the
English and had learned to love God and read His Book, and was
now on the Lake as one of His teachers. They were deeply inter-
ested, and said they would endeavour to spread the news to the
hills. The Doctor was more than ever convinced of the possibility
of evangelizing these people by natives who knew their language.

Dr. Stewart tramped south ioo miles along the coast, and Laws
took the Ilala to Kota Kota. There he saw a gang of men and
women slaves chained neck to neck, but was powerless to release
them. When Stewart rejoined the ship they discussed the question
of the new site, and agreed that the most likely spot would be
found somewhere in the middle section between Kota Kota and
Mankambira's, but that a further examination would be necessary
during the ensuing dry season. They then headed the steamer for
Livingstonia.

There the prolonged absence of the Ilala had created intense
anxiety. The three weeks had lengthened into six, and Riddel

A NEW YEAR DINNER 131

speculated endlessly as to the causes that might have detained her.
His stores were almost ended ; and at last he took one of the small
boats and made his way to the Shire, and thence to Blantyre.
There he consulted James Stewart, who heard his story with dismay,
and taking Walter, one of the Blantyre staff, hastened to Living-
stonia, which he reached after five days' sailing. No word had
arrived of the Ilala. Fitting out the Herga he started northwards,
with Walter and Ross, on a quest for the missing steamer. It was
a laborious and difficult task. Gales obstructed them repeatedly,
and they had to take refuge amongst the reeds and swamps. One
day a number of the crew who had been foraging for food along
the shore came back with the tidings that the Ilala had been seen
to pass south. Stewart, after verifying the report, turned home-
wards, but the gale was too strong and he had to run the boat
ashore. " They will come back in search of us," he said con-
fidently, and kept an eye on the Lake. By and by the Ilala came
in sight, and guns were fired to attract attention. Laws, who was
also on the look-out, heard the signal and saw the figures, and in a
short time was welcoming Stewart on board.

Riddel had thought it his duty to intimate the non-appearance
of the steamer to the authorities in Scotland, and a thrill of appre-
hension ran through the country. The Doctor's father, however,
never lost faith that all was well with his son.

XXVIII. A New Year Dinner

Business matters at Lovedale required the presence of Dr.
Stewart, and committing Livingstonia to the charge of Dr. Laws
with the words, " God has brought you here ; you are doing His
work ; keep at it," he left in December 1877, with the intention
of returning in a few months. " I find it hard," wrote the Doctor,
" to lift up the public burden laid upon me. I like obscurity and
quiet." But with two years' experience behind him he faced the
future with more confidence. To relieve Mr. James Stewart he
proceeded at once to Blantyre. He had been suffering from
fever and insomnia, but the change to the cool uplands worked
magic. The Blantyre climate he loved : its clear spring-like days,
its nights of wonderful beauty, the calm and peace that seemed
always to brood upon the scene, both rested and exhilarated him.

Mr. Stewart had worked a transformation : he had laid out the
Station in the form of a square ; buildings were rapidly going up,
some terraces for gardens were being constructed, and regular

132 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

mission work had begun. On behalf of the Livingstonia Mission
he had also projected a road from Ramo-Ku-Kan's to Matope on
the Upper Shire, which was to pass through Blantyre and reduce
the difficult 70-mile journey along the cataracts by one-half.
The first idea was to make the track wide enough to enable a small
hand-cart to pass, and thus allow three men to do the work of six,
but on hearing of the undertaking the Church of Scotland joined
in and bore half the cost, whereupon the breadth was increased
to 10 feet. It rose 3000 feet in 10 miles, and in some places had
a gradient of I in 6.

Dr. Laws carried on Stewart's work, but he made Dr. Macklin,
" a fine bright, cheery young fellow," do as much as possible in
order to train him for the management of the Station. " I can
never forget," Macklin wrote to him later, " the kind brotherly
way in which you drew me out of my shell and infused into me, by
example as well as by precept, a fresh desire to go on with, and try
to carry out, the work. Since I have lived with you new thoughts
and stronger desires have sprung up within my breast concerning
the good and glorious work that lies at my hands."

The Doctor also took part, along with Mr. Buchanan, one of the
ablest of the staff, in laying out the new road, a task which gave
him an experience that proved useful in after years. On Christmas
Day he had a narrow escape from a leopard, and on New Year's
Eve returned, fevered, to the Station. The New Year dinner was
not a success. For the first time in Central Africa a Scottish haggis
was cooked and dished up. The Doctor was very ill, and half an
hour elapsed ere he could drag himself to the table. That half-hour
was fatal to the haggis. Plum-pudding, followed by cheese and
biscuits, from which the wi evils had to be shaken, also appeared,
but the Doctor was forced to retire, followed by the others, who
were all in like case.

It was proposed to plant avenues of aromatic blue gums and
other trees along the new road through the Station, and one day
the Doctor said to Macklin, " Let us start our avenue by planting
a couple of orange trees."

" Not to-day ; it is too dry and the plants will be killed."

" I have a special reason for doing it to-day," the Doctor said.

" What is it ? "

" A birthday."

" Oh, all right. Let us get the spades. But we might also
mark the event with a dinner."

" What event ? "

A NEW YEAR DINNER 133

" Your birthday."

" I did not say it was my birthday."

Dr. Macklin whistled and looked inquiringly.

" I see," he remarked at last. " A lady ! The spades ! The
spades at once ! "

He threw off his coat and hurried out, the Doctor following,
laughing. The precious plants were brought from the little nursery,
holes were dug, and one was planted on each side of the roadway ;
and so the famous Blantyre avenue was begun.

Despite turns of fever the joy of living and working at Blantyre
was such that when Mr. Stewart came to relieve him the Doctor
faced the journey with some reluctance. When near Mponda's
he was surprised to see Miller on the bank with some of the Living-
stonia natives. They signalled to him. " It cannot be provisions,"
he thought. " I left them three months' supply. Some one must
be dead."

" What has happened ? " he cried.

" Thelwall shot himself by accident."

" When ? "

" Sunday week."

Thelwall was the Roman Catholic artist who had come with the
reinforcements and had made his headquarters at Livingstonia.
While on a journey he had gone out with some villagers to shoot
baboons that had been plundering their gardens. Firing at one
on a hill he wounded it and it fell. Reloading, he advanced to
dispatch it, but to save another shot he grasped the muzzle of the
gun and hit the beast over the head with the butt end. The shock
released the hammer and he was shot through the body. " I
am dying," he said to his men ; "go to Dr. Laws and he will see
you sent home." He succumbed some hours afterwards.

The headman, who was subject to Mponda, would not allow the
body to be buried in the village. It was placed in a canoe and
conveyed in a storm to Mponda's. Mponda saw his opportunity ;
he would give no order for its burial until the gunpowder and wine
were delivered to him. This the men declined to do. " Dr. Laws
will settle that," they pleaded. Mponda was firm. Decom-
position setting in, the point had to be conceded, and by a circuitous
route the body was taken to a solitary spot behind the village and
buried under a baobob tree. Dr. Laws went to see the grave and
found a Union Jack flying from a branch overhead. He took it
down.

" Mponda will use that in his next war-raid," he said.

134 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Miller, who had come to take an inventory of the effects, reported
that he had met a slave gang of thirty-eight men and women with
the forks on, and had found a little child which had been torn from
its mother and thrown away.

Not long afterwards the Doctor was back at Blantyre with
Johnston, who was on his way home. They had been much to each
other during these first trying years, and the parting was difficult.
Walking down the road a little they both knelt, and the Doctor
committed his friend to the care and guidance of God.

On these journeys up and down the river he had frequent
encounters with lions. Once he saw eight hunting a waterbuck.
He fired at one and all scampered off across the plain, presenting a
wonderful picture of graceful strength, agility, and freedom. On
another occasion, while on the foremast of the Ilala scanning the
banks of the river in the interests of the pot, he caught sight of one
and fired ; the animal was confused and hesitated, not knowing
where the peril lay, and the momentary pause gave Stewart and
Riddel time to shoot. The lion fell, but struggled up and made
for the shelter of the reeds. Again the Doctor fired, and this
time the shot took effect.

One of the questions which the Doctor was now considering
was his relation to the Free Church. The Committee wished to
take him over as one of their permanent agents with all the rights
of seniority. The United Presbyterian Board was loth to let him
go, and he, himself, objected. He was then asked to join the Free
Church under the Mutual Elegibility Act, but he could not bring
himself to lessen his tie with the Church of his youth ; and for a
time the matter rested there.

XXIX. Man-of-War Discipline

Stealing at Blantyre and Livingstonia and on the river was a
serious problem. On his way to the coast Dr. Stewart had written
to Laws : " This thieving must be brought to an end or it will
end us." James Stewart at Blantyre was a frequent victim ; and
when his box of best clothing was purloined he determined that
when a delinquent was caught he would be severely punished as a
lesson to others.

Early one morning in February 1878, Mapas, the Lovedale
carpenter, then at Blantyre, was lying awake when he saw a shadow
at the window. An arm was thrust in and he made a dash for it
but missed, and the figure glided off. He seized a rifle and gave

MAN-OF-WAR DISCIPLINE 135

chase in his night attire, and calling the headman both followed
the trail of the fugitive through the tall wet grass and made up on
him 8 miles from the Station. He proved to be a subject of Ramo-
Ku-Kan and admitted his guilt. The Station natives insisted that
he should be punished ; the penalty under native law, they de-
clared, was death. Stewart would not agree to this. " Ha ! "
said the natives, " the English talk plenty but they don't punish."

Stewart was still a voluntary worker and not under the official
direction of either the Free Church or the Church of Scotland.
The Blantyre missionaries had not been given any instructions
regarding their dealings with the natives such as the Livingstonia
staff had received ; they were free to use their judgment according
to the necessities of the situation ; whilst Stewart had definite
orders from Dr. MacRae, the Convener of the Church of Scotland
Committee, though apparently not from the Committee itself, to
exercise civil jurisdiction. What he did in this case was to sen-
tence the man to eight dozen lashes and six weeks in the stocks.
One of the Livingstonia artisans, Ross, was at Blantyre at the
time, and asked to be excused his turn in inflicting the strokes.

Shortly after this the Doctor proceeded to Blantyre to hand over
the Station, now well established, to the Rev. Duff Macdonald,
who had come out to take charge. On this occasion he took with
him Sam and Tom, who were returning to Cape Town. Both had
proved useful members of the native staff, and had done their
humble part in founding the Mission. But the Doctor was now
out of linguistic leading-strings and their services were no longer
required, and it was thought best that they should rejoin their
wives in Cape Colony.

Mrs. Macdonald had accompanied her husband, the first white
lady to reach the Shire Highlands. The Doctor's quick eye noticed
the improvement which her presence made in the home. " I could
not have thought it possible," he said, " that a few vases of flowers
would have made such a difference ! " She was a good musician,
and at night when she played and sang the natives crowded round
the doors to listen.

Intimating the withdrawal of the Livingstonia staff from the
Mission, the Doctor wrote to Dr. MacRae :

" In the providence of God the two missions have been brought
into very close relationship in the past, and I trust there will ever
subsist between their various members that mutual goodwill and
hearty co-operation which is of the utmost importance to them both
in the peculiar circumstances of the land in which we are placed.

136 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

There is a splendid field for work, the importance of which I do not
think can be overestimated."

Although no crime had occurred at Cape Maclear sufficiently
serious to warrant the infliction of a drastic penalty, the possibility
of having to face such a contingency haunted the Doctor, and he
wrote to Dr. Stewart asking for instructions, requesting him also
to bring the matter before the Home Committee, as it might mean
even a question of life and death for the culprit. He thought the
responsibility for such a course should rest upon them and not on
the missionaries. No reply coming to this letter he wrote direct
to Dr. Main, the convener of the Free Church Foreign Mission
C mm'ttee, a few months later, but again no attention was paid to
his representation. So far as he had formulated his own policy it
was this :

1. Regarding natives not under the control of the Mission

he entirely objected to flogging or any punishment
whatever being inflicted.

2. Regarding natives under the control of the Mission

flogging should only be resorted to as an extreme measure
for flagrant offences.

He set down Deuteronomy xxv. 3 as the limit of procedure
in the matter.

In May a case occurred which brought the matter to an issue.
Amongst the scholars were a number of schoolgirls, the care of
whom gave the Doctor much anxiety. Women occupied a low
social position in the country, and even within the precincts of the
Station these girls were not safe. They were more intelligent and
attractive than others in the villages, and were eyed avidly by
every evil-minded man who saw them. One, of light complexion
and pleasing appearance, being fatherless, was considered fit prey
for anyone lawless enough to carry her off. This was done by a
polygamist, who built a hut and took her there. The Doctor was
angry with a terrible anger, such anger as Christ must have exhibited
for those who w.onged children — " it were better that a millstone
were hanged about their neck, and that they were drowned in the
depths of the sea." He went and rescued the girl and burnt the
hut, and marched the man as a prisoner to the Station. The idea
that the latter should have asked for the girl as a wife would, the
Doctor knew, be laughed at in Scotland, but it was native law.
All the people at the Station and neighbouring villages condemned
the action, declaring also that the girl was too young to be taken.
The Doctor's purpose was to raise, if he could, the native estimate

MAN-OF-WAR DISCIPLINE 137

of woman's virtue and to make it known that no one could with
impunity hurt a child committed to his care.

Placing the man in the stocks he went to Namkamba, a big,
intelligent man with a look of power, who was the superior of the
various headmen in the district, and explained what he had done.

" My object," he said, " is to protect the children in our care
and to uphold and protect womanly purity, for that is what our
religion enjoins. Anyone who touches one of the children touches
me. If you or any other Chief send your children to school I am
bound to protect them."

The Chief heartily agreed and expressed pleasure that the
English desired to keep matters right according to African law.
" I try to have none of this kind of thing in my village," he re-
marked.

" I want you to sentence this man then," the Doctor said.

" But he is not a subject of mine. I cannot deal with him."

" What would you do if you had a similar case ? "

" I would tie him up . . . and then make him a slave."

" The English do not keep slaves, and besides we do not want
him about the Station."

" Find out who his Chief is."

With much difficulty he was discovered, and the Doctor asked
him to take up the case, which he did in concert with several other
headmen. Their verdict was " Guilty." " We wish you to sentence
him," they said to the Doctor, who refused. " You are the judges
and you must award the punishment." One proposed thirty lashes,
another twenty ; the other four thought ten would be sufficient.

" You must agree on a common number," said the Doctor, and
they decided on twenty. Then he invited all the men who had
come from the village — for the case had been noised abroad — into
the schoolroom, and related the circumstances, and all agreed with
the judgment and approved the sentence. The lash was the last
instrument with which the Doctor desired to be associated ; " but,"
he said, " ' animal offences ' are perhaps best treated by ' animal
punishment,' and it is my duty and has to be done." Koyi, who
was very fond of children, and whose wrath had been roused by
the case, said, " I hope you will allow me to give him two dozen."

The prisoner was taken out, and in the presence of his judges
and a crowd of men the strokes were inflicted with a strip of hide,
the Doctor standing by, hating the whole business but hardening
his heart by thinking of the dishonoured girl and the need for
safeguarding the others.

138 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

When thirteen lashes had been given he stepped forward.
" Enough," he said. The punishment had been sufficient to
impress the natives and show them that crime would not go un-
regarded. Applying ointment to the man's back he kept him in
the Station, and discharged him, perfectly whole, next day.

In the ordinary course he reported the circumstance to Dr.
Stewart, who was still his superior. " I hope," he wrote, " I may
never have the same duty to perform again." Nor had he. It
was the only case he personally had anything to do with and the
only one he ever saw. Not long afterwards a man was accused
of having sold one of the children who went to the school. The
Doctor left the case entirely in the hands of the native jury of
headmen, who sentenced the culprit to be flogged and deported.
At the request of the Doctor the flogging was omitted and the man
was ordered to be sent to Mpemba ; but digging away the clay under
the door of his prison, he escaped.

The majority of the complaints brought to the Doctor were of
a minor character — cursing cases, quarrellings, domestic offences,
and so on : sometimes he would be roused in the middle of the
night by women seeking protection from their husbands ; as a
rule these were the result of the parties drinking moa or beer.
The usual punishment was a fine paid in mapira or other food-
stuff.

Although he allowed the natives to adjudicate the cases he often
took the law into his own hands, and some of his dealings with
offenders were not unaccompanied by a grim, even grotesque,
humour. To cure boy scholars when they appeared the worse of
beer he gave each a dose of mustard and water in presence of the
school. Two despairing husbands one day brought their wives,
who could not refrain from squabbling : one in her fury had bitten
the other's fingers. After patiently hearing the different versions the
Doctor procured some sticking-plaster from the dispensary. The
one with the injured finger had it bound up and a strip of plaster
fastened across her lips ; the mouth of the other, being the fouler,
was sealed with two strips. Both were dispatched to their homes
under the escort of Riddel and Koyi, with orders that they were
to return at sundown to have the strips taken off. The husbands,
exploding with laughter, departed in huge enjoyment of the white
man's effective cure for bridling long tongues.

The Doctor's mode of summoning delinquents was to send them
an impression of a seal which he had obtained on a hint from Waller
that it would be wise to close securely all letters passing through

WORD NUGGETS 139

Portuguese hands. He used red wax, which the natives imagined
to be solidified blood, and they never disobeyed the order. On
the seal were the words, " The Regions Beyond — I'll try." He
was afterwards given the present of a signet ring with the same
design, and this he used instead.

XXX. Word Nuggets

The Doctor felt the fascination of being constantly on the move ;
he would have liked to follow Dr. Livingstone's example, and
always be marching forward into new scenes. There was nothing
that he enjoyed more than sailing on the river, or along the Lake
shore, camping at night on the land, sitting talking to the natives
round a blazing fire, and speaking to them of the love of God and
Christ. But he realized that this was not now what was most
needed. What was going to redeem Africa was the organization
of regular work : the slow, steady, building up of character, the
continuous pressure of moral and spiritual forces. It was a harder
service and not so attractive, but it was in the line of duty, which
was sufficient for him.

He never relaxed his efforts on the Station even although he
knew what he was doing would have to be done all over again
at a new site. The place continued to present a scene of cheerful
activity. There was now a community of some hundreds, every
member of which had been tested by a period of residence before
being allowed to settle. Mlolo, tried and proved by years of service,
had been appointed capitao, and was the Doctor's right-hand
man. But for the drought the gardens and fields would have
shown a fine display of crops. The wheat was a failure, but
there were acres of rice, ground-nuts, castor-oil beans, ginger,
cabbages, tomatoes, cape gooseberries, chillies, pine-apples, and
water-melons. Sixty gallons of oil were extracted from the ground-
nuts. Apricot, peach, and banana trees there were in abundance,
with fruit of good quality, while 150 healthy orange and 140 lemon
plants, 34 cocoa-nut palms, many date palms, and over 300 healthy
young blue gums testified to the skill and care of the missionaries.
Tea was tried, but would not grow in the sandy soil.

The lost wheat crop did not affect the economy of the Station
to any degree. While in the first year not a basket of grain could
be procured from the natives, now in a single day more than a
ton of grain and three-quarters of a ton of sweet potatoes would be
brought for sale. " Thinking ahead," the Doctor bought up large

HO LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

quantities so that he would not be at the mercy of sellers when a
drought came. Flowers were also being experimented with, and
it was a delight when from a rose-plant two red roses were obtained,
the first grown in the Nyasa district.

Progress was being made in the industrial department, the
boys turning out more difficult work, such as school furniture, doors,
and shelving. For the girls the Doctor started a sewing class, and
they also took a share in preparing the grain. Before the outdoor
workers started in the afternoon he held a meeting with them and
gave them descriptions of the outer world and its arts and manu-
factures. The new buildings were now being made of sun-dried
bricks. The school, composed of boarders and day scholars, had
a roll of sixty-five, but the average attendance was only about
forty : the children had not yet learned regular habits. For two
hours daily the pupils were employed in manual labour.

Confidence in the medical skill of the Doctor was growing : the
relief from suffering received was, he believed, giving the Mission a
place in the hearts of the people which would prove its greatest
security and safety. His practice ranged from extracting teeth
to the performance of serious operations. The natives could not
yet comprehend the miracle of chloroform ; they spoke of it as
" dying," and would crowd round the building and stand in open-
mouthed wonder at the Doctor calmly cutting away at a man's
body while his assistants mopped up the blood. He was teaching
a boy to help him in dressing sores and other simple duties. " I
hope to be able to train him to dispensary work. Of this I am
convinced, that on native agency we must rely for everything in
the future, and therefore the sooner we get them trained to the
work the better."

The health of the European staff had improved, the Doctor
attributing the fact chiefly to the frequent changes he arranged for
them to the cool and bracing atmosphere of Blantyre. " We do
not look on fever as such a terrible thing as some people at home
imagine it is," he wrote. " We have good cause to know that it
can be deadly enough, yet we do not think of it with dread, but go
quietly on with our work."

Direct evangelistic work was constantly going on, but the great
day was Sunday. Two native services were held, the second being
of the nature of a Sunday school, at which the Doctor catechized
the members regarding the earlier address. Attendances varied
from 120 to 300, the smaller number occurring when the people
were compelled to remain in their gardens to chase off the baboons.

WORD NUGGETS 141

For the children there was a Sunday school in the afternoon, and
for the Europeans a service at night. What the effect of the
teaching on the native mind was, the Doctor found it difficult to
gauge. They seemed easily to forget what they heard, but it was
significant that those who retained most were the men of character
and worth in the community. One of these had a model home,
conducted family worship, and asked a blessing at meals. Two
were talking about some misdemeanour that had been committed.
" When the Azungu are so clever and have so many things," said
one, " how is it that they have no medicine to make people do what
is right ? " " They have," replied the other. " What is it ? "
" God's Book."

Feeling that he was now justified in extending the work, the
Doctor one Sunday had a boat launched, gathered a volunteer crew,
and, with Koyi, was paddled round to the nearest village, where
Mpango was Chief. Gathering the people, many of whom were
drunk, he held a service, the women peering round corners and
through fences or calmly pounding their grain. This was the
beginning of the itinerating work which came to bulk so largely
in the activities of the Mission.

The other Chief, Namkamba, whom the Doctor had nut before,
was an extremely superstitious man. During the drought he sent
a goat to the Doctor, with an urgent message for blue calico.

"Why blue? I have none."

"The Chief is making an offering and a sacrifice for rain, and
the girl who is the priestess must be clothed in blue."

" Well, there is striped calico, and tell him that an offering to
his unknown god will not bring rain. Prayer is the only power
that matters, and the true God hears true prayer."

The Doctor went to see him again and showed him a small self-
winding measuring tape. Unrolling it he pressed the spring and
the tape disappeared. The Chief was puzzled ; to him it was
magic. He tried to wind it and failed. The Doctor then took hold
of his finger and placed it on the spring. The mystery was solved,
to the Chief's delight.

Following up his advantage the Doctor said, " I am glad you
believe in a god of a sort. Our object here is to teach you about
the true One. Would you like us to come and speak ? "

A cordial consent was given and services were begun. After a
time the Doctor appealed to the Chief to send the children to school.
" Wait a little," the latter said. " A short time ago the children
fled from you in horror ; now they ask when you are coming ; soon

142 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

they will look upon you as friends and wish to go with you. Just
now they would be afraid."

The Doctor's regular hours of duty at this time were from
5.30 a.m. to 10 or 11 p.m., and he had little spare time for study.
But he secured an hour in the early morning to go on with his
translation work. He had now completed a considerable portion
of Mark in Chinyanja. It was a difficult task, for, as he often
frankly acknowledged, he was no linguist, and the language was
poor in abstract ideas or terms which had a reference to civilized
life. " I do not call this a translation," he said, " but it may be
the first rough outline, which, disappearing, shall in better fitted
hands be transformed to a living account of the life and work of
our blessed Lord." A dictionary also was well under way, and at
this he toiled with the most patient, methodical thoroughness.
He often wished that he possessed the power of versification in
order to translate some hymns, but when he essayed the task he
found that the genius of native poetry and music expressed itself
in the form of chanting. Endeavouring to translate the 23rd
Psalm in this manner, he stuck at the word " shepherd." The
only native equivalent he could obtain was, " A man who feeds
sheep." Convinced that there must be a single word for it he waited
and listened for months. One night he heard a lad telling his
companions about a picture of David as a herd-boy which he had
seen. " Mbusa," he said : that was the word, and the chant
was completed. In a similar way he hunted for other words, and
each new find was to him like a nugget of gold. It was ten years
ere he found the term for " colour." Riddel was the first to write
out some hymns, which the children went about singing to their
heart's content. To the staff, however, mental work was not
very attractive after their day's toil. Even a prize of £5 offered
by the Doctor for the best essay on " How to advance Christianity
and Civilization in the Nyasa District " failed to bring in more than
one contribution, and that a poor one.

An event of much interest was the first marriage according to
the Christian fashion, the bridegroom being Gulinga, a stoker of the
Ilala, a fine, well-mannered fellow, and the bride a somewhat surly
girl who had taken refuge at the Station. The ceremony took
place in the dining-hall, and the Doctor put on his best clothes and
his best tie for the occasion. He spoke to the couple and to the
crowd who listened regarding the significance of the ceremony and
the value of family worship. " I never," he said, " felt more im-
pressed with the solemnity of the marriage bond as at this simple

THE BEGINNING OF TRADE 143

ceremony." Gifts were made to the pair, such gifts as made them
rich, and so affected the onlookers that others began to plan im-
mediate weddings. One did go off at once in the quest for a wife,
but failed. From that time onwards such unions became common.
The Doctor did not restrict the ceremony to Christians : any single
man and woman, desirous to live as monogamists, after due instruc-
tion and pledging themselves to maintain the simple relation,
were married after the same manner.

XXXI. The Beginning of Trade

In Scotland the movements of the pioneers were being followed
with deep interest : there was the glamour of a great romance
about the work, and the reports and letters appearing in the maga-
zines of the churches and in the newspapers were eagerly read.
No difficulty was experienced in maintaining the funds, committees
in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee, and Aberdeen having been formed,
while many United Presbyterians subscribed in view of the con-
nection of Dr. Laws with the work. The success of the enterprise
had been noised throughout Europe, and there was much talk in
commercial circles of exploration schemes, railways and roads,
and trading concerns.

Livingstonia had opened up inland Africa to the world.
The Mission was fortunate in the Committee which managed its
affairs. The original Livingstonia Committee in Glasgow had been
found to be too unwieldy and a smaller body came into existence,
composed of a number of men, not members of the Free Church,
nominated by the parent Committee, and a number nominated by
the Foreign Mission Committee of the Free Church. This was
called the Livingstonia Sub-Committee, and its proceedings were
reported to the Foreign Mission Committee. Most of the members
were well-known citizens of Glasgow accustomed to the manage-
ment of large business organizations, keen, level-headed, large-
hearted men who brought intelligence, sympathy, and personal
energy to bear upon the work and its problems. Dr. Laws states
that had he not been backed up so loyally and so royally by the
Committee at home in the early days the Mission would not have
been so successful as it was.

The Convener was Mr. James Stevenson, the Glasgow merchant
prince, who was interested not only in Livingstonia but in the
general development of Africa ; and it was largely to his influence,
supervision, and liberality that so much progress was made. He had

i44 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

an intimate knowledge of conditions in Africa and this made him
sympathetic with the missionaries. " We sit here at home," he
would say, " talking of big plans without having the labour, the
exposure, the danger, the deprivation which they have in carrying
them out." Of Dr. Laws he had a high opinion — " A special
providence," he said, " has sent him to Africa."

" Big plans " he was constantly turning over in his mind, all
directed to the opening up of Africa to civilization and Christianity.
The obstructive tactics of the Portuguese below the junction of the
Shire and Zambezi directed his attention to the possibility of access
to the Lake by a northern route. The mere suggestion alarmed the
Portuguese, and transit charges were lowered. When he heard
of the road being constructed from Ramo-Ku-Kan's to Matope,
via Blantyre, he grasped the importance of it and suggested that a
shallow-draught steamer should be obtained to ply on the Shire
and Zambezi to complete the easy and rapid communication between
the Lake and the coast. This the Committee agreed to, but it was
felt that such a matter was connected with the development of
trade, which the Mission could not undertake, and the hope was
expressed that a company would be formed to take such functions
out of the hands of the Committee and the missionaries.

The result was an offer by two young men, John W. Moir and his
brother, Fred L. M. Moir — sons of a well-known Edinburgh doctor —
to undertake the work. They had been out in East Africa engaged
on a road from Dar-es-Salaam to Lake Tanganyika and knew
something of tropical life. Through the efforts of Mr. Stevenson
the Livingstonia Central Africa Company Ltd. was incorporated
in June 1878, with the object of developing the trade and resources
of Central Africa and introducing legitimate traffic amongst the
natives, an arrangement being made by which they would work hand
in hand with the Mission and promote its aims. The two Moirs,
who were shareholders, were appointed managers, and reached
Quilimane in September with a vessel, the Lady Nyasa, in sections,
and a large quantity of Manchester goods to barter for ivory, rubber,
and other produce. The Bala was retained by the Mission but was
to be used, under certain conditions, by the Company.

Poring over the map of Africa, the blank spaces of which were
now beginning to be filled up, Stevenson planned further schemes.
The London Missionary Society had begun operations on Lake
Tanganyika, and finding the land journey from the coast in-
convenient they proposed opening communication via Lake Nyasa.
Stevenson's idea was that the two lakes should be connected by a

Miss A. Nyasa Laws

Mrs. Laws

Typical Ngoni Girls

■■■■■
A Living Fence : Seventeen Languages are represented here

A CRITICAL POISON TEST 145

road, and that the Livingstonia Mission should establish a station
at some strategic point at the north end and on the route across the
hills, and so link up the stations of the various mission agencies.
The Trading Company could then transport the steamer, which the
L.M.S. thought of obtaining, by the Zambezi and Nyasa route.
Such a road he resolved to finance.

When the Moirs arrived up-river, Laws was much impressed
by their ability and character. " Fine young fellows and true
Christians," he wrote, and then, with his usual insight and fore-
sight, " They will be of the greatest service in our work, and be a
boon to the country," a prophecy which they literally fulfilled.
In their dual capacity, at first, of missionaries and traders, they
gave invaluable aid to the Doctor. Both were intrepid explorers,
penetrating far west of Nyasa, and Fred became one of the greatest
and most successful elephant hunters in Africa.

Their headquarters were on a pleasant eminence about a mile
from Blantyre Mission Station, where they established a fort and
stores. John wore spectacles, in which the natives saw themselves
reflected, and, as was their habit, they seized on this distinctive
feature, applied their word for things they saw reflected in water —
"Mandala" — to himself, and then to the stores; to-day there is
no more familiar word on the lips of the people throughout Central
Africa. Fred's name was equally as appropriate : it was " Che
Ndebvu "—Mr. Big Beard.

XXXII. A Critical Poison Test

Preparations for the next exploring expedition were being made
by the Doctor with a thoroughness which left nothing to chance.
He was determined that the results should be more complete than
any yet achieved ; he meant not only to examine the conditions
along the western littoral, but to push into the highland plateau
behind, and visit the Ngoni Chiefs in their strongholds. Upon the
success of his plans would depend the future of the Mission and
probably the political fate of the country.

For a time he cautiously felt his way, making advances to various
Chiefs, and endeavouring to establish amicable relations with them.
Very welcome was a message from the Mission's old enemy, Mpemba,
who sent a tusk and a sheep, and said he now desired to be friends
with the English. But Mpemba was at variance with Jumbe, and it
was necessary to see the latter and ensure his good offices.
xo

146 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Jumbd received the Doctor surrounded by his Swahili coun-
cillors. They spoke of Captain Elton's death.

" Who is to be my friend now ? " he asked.

" I will be, in all that is right," said the Doctor.

" That is well."

" I am going inland on a journey," the Doctor intimated, " and
want you to store some goods for me."

" They shall be put in my house and be safe."

" It is a supply of provisions and barter goods that I wish to
have in case I need them."

" Put them here," said Jumbe, showing a room in which were
piled up thirty tusks of ivory. " I need cloth," he went on ; " buy
one of these."

The Doctor demurred : the Mission did not deal in ivory. Jumbe
pressed him, and thinking that it would be advisable in the
circumstances, the Doctor bought, on behalf of the Mission, one
weighing 23 lb., for which he paid 187 yards of calico.

" One of my men," remarked Jumbe, " has just come in from
the interior with 2000 lb. of ivory."

Not wishing to deprive the Station of the Ilala, the Doctor
decided to utilize her as little as possible. Three depots of pro-
visions were, therefore, established, with one as a reserve. A
frequent letter service was also arranged in order that no anxiety
might be felt in case of undue delay. To test the efficiency of the
camping arrangements, the Doctor and Stewart lived in the tent,
which they were to share between them, for some days previous
to starting, exactly as if they had been on the march. Koyi had
the use of another, in which also the goods were to be housed as a
precaution against theft. Two guiding principles the Doctor laid
down : to proceed slowly and methodically ; and to travel as
comfortably as possible to ensure good health — wise rules which,
if they had been more generally adopted in African journeys, would
have saved many lives.

The party consisted of the Doctor, Mr. Stewart, Wm. Koyi,
Fred, Mlolo the headman, eight armed natives as a guard, and
thirty-eight carriers, representing altogether five different languages.
Gunn was left in charge of the Station, with Riddel to conduct the
school. Mlolo had a special reason for wishing to be one of the
number; he cherished the hope of finding trace of his daughter,
who had been captured by the Ngoni.

The Doctor's first objective was the headquarters of Chikusi,
the Chief of Southern Ngoniland, amongst those western mountains

A CRITICAL POISON TEST 147

which he had so often regarded with interest from his retreat
on the hillside. Leaving Cape Maclear on 12th August 1879, a
landing was effected that night on the coast, 15 miles to the south-
west of Livingstonia. All next day the party marched across a
hot, parched, and deserted plain, the baked blue clay soil of which
was imprinted with multitudinous tracks of elephants and hippos.
Towards the low foot-hills the land became more fertile, and sup-
ported a large population of the original Nyanja, who had become
subjects of the Ngoni and aped their manners and customs.

As they passed into the hill country the native track grew steeper
until it became a stair, and then a ladder, and they had to climb
up with the aid of tree roots and rocks. Emerging from the haze
and oppressive heat they entered a clear bracing atmosphere, where
at night they suffered from cold. As Ngoni with shields and spears
crossed their path, indicating the proximity of villages, the tents
were pitched side by side and the fires of the carriers made up a
few yards away, whilst guards of men with rifles and fixed bayonets
kept watch throughout the night. Continuing over a desolate
country they saw, at an altitude of 5000 feet, a magnificent panor-
ama of scenery ; to the north and west the undulating tableland
of Ngoniland, broken by granitic peaks, spread as far as the eye
could see, and on the east and stretching north and south was the
shining sheet of Nyasa with its bordering plains ; southwards was
the promontory of Cape Maclear; with the Mission Station and
beautiful bay easily discernible ; and, beyond, the massive peaks of
the Shire Highlands-
Amazed at the temerity of the strangers, and afraid to take the
responsibility of helping them, the people they came across refused
to supply guides, but the village of the Chief was ultimately found,
situated in open country with a view all round of from 15 to 20
miles. The land, which was 4700 feet above sea-level, had been
denuded of its trees, and the soil seemed poor, but there was abund-
ance of cattle. The population, estimated by the Doctor at about
20.000, was wild in the extreme ; all the men carried clubs, spears,
and shields. For dress they wore only a bunch of feathers or a small
skin, with rings of hide on their legs and arms. The younger, lithe
and active, moved about in the clear cool air with the spring and
agility of cats. As for the women, their sole attire consisted of a
piece of bark cloth, some having also a sheep or goat skin thrown
over their shoulders.

Two men were sent forward to the Chief to ask for a camping-
place. No response being made, and the darkness falling, the

i48 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

party entered the village, a circle of wretched huts, and rested
beside the cattle kraal, the carriers huddling together in silence
with strained, alert faces. The air was charged with tension and
terror. Chikusi refused to appear, but had a surreptitious look at
the visitors. One of his councillors at last came forward, and Fred
spoke to him, but was not understood. Koyi then tried him with
Zulu, and his face lighted up with interest. He was then informed
that the white man had come in peace. They were shown a spot
on which to pitch their tents, and the two leaders were glad to take
refuge from the cold beneath their blankets. The thermometer
registered 440 Fah. during the night. Next day the Chief was still
afraid, and would not appear. Palavers went on with the coun-
cillors, all old, grey-haired men, with keen, intelligent, and resolute
faces, who would not believe that the visitors had come in a friendly
spirit.

" Show your goodwill," they said, " by sending a gift to the

Chief."

" It is our English custom," was the reply, " to give the present
to the Chief himself."

" You want to bewitch him ! You must go away and take all
your evil spirits with you."

Koyi endeavoured to explain their mission. " We welcome
you as one of ourselves," they said, " but you are their slave, or
else why are you with them ? "

He told them the story of his life, of his wild boyhood, his stay
at Lovedale, and his object in coming to Nyasa. So deeply in-
terested were they that he had to repeat the narrative over and
over again. He told the Doctor that these men were able to use
all the Zulu clicks. It was probably the talk about Koyi that
brought out the mother of Chikusi ; she was accompanied by his
sister, a woman of light colour with bright, intelligent face, and
adorned with brass rings and bracelets of wire. They were each
given a dress. Koyi found favour in their eyes, and they wished
him to settle with the tribe. Whilst this talk was going on a
message arrived that the visitors were to shift their tent to a hollow
outside the village in the direction opposite to the route by which
they proposed leaving. This looked suspicious, and they sat tight.

" Why did you not move ? " they were asked next morning.

" Why did you ask us to move ? " countered Koyi. " It did not
show a friendly spirit."

" It is you who are not friendly ; you have a double purpose in
coming here."

A CRITICAL POISON TEST 149

" I am willing," replied Koyi, " to stand in the white man's
place, and if anything wrong happens you can cut off my head."

Still they were not satisfied ; behind the scenes a secret cere-
mony was taking place. To test whether there was any evil object
in the visit the ordeal of poison was administered to a man. He
vomited the mixture, which was, so far, satisfactory ; it was next
administered to a dog, which also rejected it ; and then to a fowl,
which did the same. There was peace, therefore, in the hearts of
the white men. In a sense this weird African rite influenced the
future of Ngoniland. Large parties of anned men had been quietly
gathering in the village, and had the verdict been different the
party, it was believed, would have been massacred and the Living-
stonia Mission wiped out of existence.

At last came the intimation that the Chief would be satisfied
if the customary gift was sent, and Koyi advising compliance, the
Doctor agreed. One of the headmen was appointed Chief for the
moment, and some calico, shirts, beads, knives, trinkets, and other
articles to the value of £4 were handed over to him. In this odd
fashion the compact of friendship was sealed.

That night the Doctor noticed lights moving about some of the
distant villages ; on asking the meaning of it, he was told that
the people were out with torches hunting rats and mice to eat with
their porridge.

On Sunday the Doctor worked at his translation of Mark's
Gospel, and in the evening gathered as many of the people as he
could round the camp fire and told them the story of the Prodigal
Son. One headman was much impressed by the recital, and ex-
pressed his approval of the father's attitude of love and forgiveness
by snapping his fingers and an occasional " yebo " of assent.

Next day came the State visit. Chikusi, a tall, excessively
corpulent, sensual-looking man, with a perfectly emotionless face,
took his place on an ant-hill ; he wore a blue robe thrown loosely
about him ; round his ankles were some brass rings, and he carried
a staff. The white men were directed to sit on stools some distance
away, and the councillors ranged themselves closely round the
Chief in order to intercept any evil influence that might emanate
from them.

Not a word came from Chikusi ; speaking was left to one of the
headmen.

" We have come," said the Doctor, " on a friendly visit. We are
all the children of the same Father. We are white, but we are
men like you ; if we cut ourselves we bleed ; if we walk we get tired

150 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and need rest ; if we hunger we have to eat. God is our Father —
yours and ours. From Him we bring a Book with a message
to all His people. He desires all to live at peace with each other.
We are men of the Book, have been living on the Lake for years,
and have made friends with many Chiefs. We teach children to
read the Book and obey God's law ; to work in wood, and to know
about the arts of civilized life."

" We are glad you have come," the headman gravely replied.
" We welcome you as messengers from the Father of whom we
know little. We have only one question to ask : will any evil,
any sickness or death, come to our village on account of your visit,
and will you, when you go, take away all your spirits with you,
not leaving even one to plague us afterwards ? "

" Sickness and death," said the Doctor, " were in your village
before we came, and there will be none because of our being here.
The only medicine I use is in the treatment and cure of bodily
ills."

" We are satisfied. You are greater than we. You are our
fathers and we are your children."

Suddenly Chikusi rose and walked off, followed by a singularly
lugubrious groan of respect from the assembled crowd. The coun-
cillors then pressed the visitors to remain another night that the
Chief might have a good sleep after having seen them.

Later a messenger came from Chikusi.

" The Chief wants the white man's Bible."

" Why ? "

"He is told that it contains the secret which has made the
English great."

" Tell him he cannot learn the secret from the Book unless he
can read it."

The Doctor suspected that he would use it as a charm, and
decided not to leave him one.

" Tell him also that in order that he may sleep sound to-night
we shall stay until to-morrow."

While the negotiations had been going on Mlolo was conducting
a search for his slave daughter, and to his joy discovered her in a
neighbouring village. Her captor, however, refused to give her
up. The Doctor therefore approached the Chief's mother, obtained
her sympathy and help, and at sunrise on the day of departure a
man was sent with Koyi and Mlolo to the village to arrange for the
redemption of the girl. After some trouble a ransom was accepted,
and at noon she was brought to Chikusi's, where the party were

COAL 151

waiting impatiently in marching order. The girl, who was only
seventeen, was about to become a mother, and the Doctor slackened
the pace and proceeded by easy stages, and latterly made up a
hammock for her conveyance.

XXXIII. Coal

The party marched north, descending into valleys rich in maize,
ground-nuts, and pumpkins, climbing ridges to the height of 5000
feet, crossing streams and passing through an occasional cluster of
huts belonging to the remnants of a tribe conquered and planted
there by Chikusi. Then came a 60 to 70 mile strip of wilderness,
laid waste in war, and kept as a barrier between hereditary foes.
For the next Chief on the hills was Tambala, a Yao, whose territory
was stuck like a wedge into Ngoniland. His central stronghold
was one of the most extraordinary sights the Doctor had seen in
Africa. It was a gigantic jumble of precipitous hills, some of the
crag-and-tail variety, and on the brink of every cliff, and in every
nook and corner of the rocks, were pitched the limpet -like huts of
the people. The majority of the villages were inaccessible save from
one difficult side. Strings of women and children were climbing
up and down the single steep tracks, carrying water-pots, and pro-
duce from their gardens, 1000 feet below.

Tambala was away on an ivory-trading expedition and Mlenga
was in charge, a frank, agreeable man, who warned the Doctor not
to inform the next "Ngoni Chief Chiwere that he was going to visit
Chipatula, as these two were hostile to one another. From this
point the Doctor sent Mlolo's daughter down to Mpembe's with a
request that she should be taken to Livingstonia. This was done ;
she was placed in a canoe, and had a smooth passage across the
Lake. At the landing-stage a native woman sauntered down,
African fashion, to hear the news. She stared at the girl, and
recognizing her own daughter, threw her arms around her, and then
cast herself at Mr. Gunn's feet, blessing the white men for restoring
her long-lost child to her. Three days afterwards the girl gave
birth to a son. Later she was married to one of the lads at the
Station.

The Expedition crossed the Lintippe and passed through another
no-man's-land before approaching Chiwere's. Here trouble was
experienced. Each village was governed by a true Ngoni, whose
duty it was to detain strangers and send word to the Chief, and they
were frequently stopped until satisfaction was given. So belli-

152 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

gerent were some of the headmen that they challenged the white
strangers to fight. These Ngoni were mostly original stock, tall,
erect, with a military bearing, exhibiting a haughtiness bordering
on insolence, and yet superstitious to an extreme degree. The
Doctor was much drawn to them ; he liked their manly independence
and their courtesy, qualities so absent in the people of the Lake
shore. As he walked behind the guides, the latter always called
his attention to any projecting stone or stump or cavity in the
ground by knocking with their clubs, and when pitching their
tents they were taken politely to the best and highest spot away
from the hollows.

When they arrived at the head village an old Nyanja man spoke
to the Doctor. " Have you come to buy ivory ? " he asked
eagerly. " How many slaves will you take ? I want some long-
cloth." The Doctor did not conceal his disgust with one who thus
engaged in a traffic that had shattered his race.

Very patiently the Doctor bore with the dilatory tactics of the
councillors ; he had learnt from experience that hurry merely
hindered progress, and that all came right if only goodwill and re-
straint were shown. They got away at last on the next five days'
stage to Kota Kota. The earlier scenery was pleasant, the climate
cool, and the soil fruitful ; they saw acres of peas in bloom, exactly
similar to the English pea, a native loom at work, and peasantry
using wooden hoes.

Then came the long winding descent to Kota Kota through a
wooded region, and by well-worn tracks bordered by discarded
slave yokes, and along elephant paths, the best in the country, to
Jumbe's town. To the Doctor's surprise that potentate, with a
retinue, advanced to meet him, led the party to his house, and
ordered the tents to be pitched in his courtyard. The Doctor knew
native nature fairly well by this time, and waited expectantly.
At 3 a.m. next morning, Fred awoke him. " Jumbe is here and
wishes to speak to you." Jumbe came into the tent, and the facts
came out : he had been fighting some insurgent headmen, and
confessed that, having to reward and feast his followers, he had been
obliged to use eight of the trusses of calico left in his care ; he would
repay what he had taken at once, and asked the Doctor to help him
in the government of his territory. " We have not come here
to fight," was the reply, " or to interfere in local quarrels, but to
teach you to live at peace."

Jumbo's other news was disquieting. The whole country was
in a ferment as a result of a general revolt of the Tonga shore tribe

COAL 153

whom the Ngoni had subjugated and enthralled ; thousands of
the vassals had fled from the hills to the Lake, where, under Man-
kambira at Chintechi, about 14 miles to the north, they were putting
up a desperate fight. Mankambira had gained several victories,
and was boasting that it was because of the war medicine he had
obtained from the Doctor. This had enraged the Ngoni, and the
situation looked dangerous for the missionaries. The carriers were
alarmed, and all, with a few exceptions, refused to proceed and
clamoured to return. The Doctor and Mr. Stewart tried to laugh
them out of their fears, but in vain.

" We are women and not meant to fight."

" Come, don't be cowards."

" That is just what we are ! We are tillers of the ground and
not fighting men ; we want to go home."

The loyal ones broke in : " We must go with the English, and
where they die, we shall die, and where their graves are, ours shall
be also."

"Oh no," said one. " I prefer being buried in my own
village."

" You may be caught on the way and made slaves," grimly
remarked the Doctor.

" We may be slaves, but we shall be alive. We have dreamed
that if we go on we shall be killed."

The Doctor shrugged his shoulders. " So much for the
Nyanja," he thought. Aloud, " Go and take another night to think
of it, and dream another and better dream."

But they were obdurate, and after much wearisome squabbling,
the Doctor tried another plan : he determined to fight fear by fear.
" Beware ! " he said. " If you desert us you will make the English
your enemies." This was a new and startling point of view, and it
was effective in bringing them to their senses.

One day the Doctor was told that an English boat had passed,
going south, some distance out. In it was Mr. Rhodes on his way
from the north end, and hearing from some fishermen that Dr. Laws
and Mr. Stewart were at Kota Kota he returned. Almost his first
words were, " I have brought you a present which I am sure you
will be glad to see." He held out what seemed to be a black stone.

" Coal ! " they exclaimed. " Where did you discover it ? "

" In a small stream a few miles to the south of Mount Waller ;
there is a seam 5 to 6 feet thick, and another smaller one."

" An important find ! It will work wonders on the Lake if the
area is at all extensive."

154 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Koyi on seeing the piece said that while at Florence Bay in the
previous year he had found a mineral like it in the gullies of Mount
Waller.

XXXIV. Zulu Potentates

When the Expedition left Kota Kota, Jumbd ostentatiously
paraded his friendship by accompanying it for some distance. The
Doctor's object now was to find a good harbour for the Ilala, and he
therefore kept to the shore and explored every stream, creek, and
lagoon on the way. Game roamed over the land ; one evening
while out for food he came across a herd of elephants, and sent for
Stewart and his heavy rifle. An exciting scene followed : one
animal charged ; at 10 yards, eight bullets crashed into its body, but
it merely wagged its tail and trotted off. Another was wounded,
but the dusk coming on and the roar of lions being heard they
returned to camp.

Inhabitants along the coast were scanty ; they were the rem-
nants of the old population decimated by the Ngoni, and lived
amongst the swamps and on islands and sandbanks, protected on the
land side by stockades. Cassava was the principal crop, and this
was not without its political significance. Maize ripened at a certain
season, and it was then that the Ngoni raids for food occurred ; but
cassava was a slower crop, ripening at all seasons, and did not
present the same temptation to the hill -dwellers. Apart from
small fish, cassava, therefore, was the staple food of the tribes along
the western shore of the Lake.

They entered the country of the Tonga, where women were seen
wearing lip-rings made of quartz, some weighing from 6 to 8 ounces,
and came to the village of Marenga — the Chief Dr. Livingstone
thought would be friendly to missions — situated in the midst of a
wilderness of thorny bush. The paths leading to it were full of
secret traps ; at every opening where it was thought likely the
enemy might plant his foot, split bamboos, sharpened, were driven
into the ground and cunningly concealed with leaves and grass.
Three stockades of tree poles protected the village ; the opening
in the first was so narrow that it had to be enlarged to admit the
head-loads.

A bold headland projected into the Lake here, protecting two
bays, which the Doctor considered might be serviceable and were
marked for future investigation. Farther north the river Lueia
was explored by means of a canoe, but the bar at the mouth closed

ZULU POTENTATES 155

it to ordinary navigation. Here Mankambira's new village of
fugitives was established, more than a thousand huts, on an extensive
sandbank, with an arm of the river and a marsh on the landward
side, and defended by double stockades. Ngoni head-dresses and
ornaments hanging on the bush bore out the Chief's claim to success
in the fighting.

There seemed no doubt that Mombera was the supreme ruler of
Northern Ngoniland, to judge from the way he was spoken of ; his
name was mentioned with bated breath, although others, Mtwaro,
his brother, and Chipatula, were constantly referred to. Mom-
bera dwelt somewhere on the high plateau beyond the range of blue
peaks which closed in the western sky. He or Chipatula the Doctor
was determined to see. Striking inland through cassava gardens
the party ascended into a pleasant undulating district with well-
wooded ridges and many streams. A Ngoni scout whom they
stumbled across said an impi was encamped near, and after sending
a message announcing their approach, the Doctor sought a strategic
spot on the opposite bank of a stream. Across this he talked to the
warriors, and the palaver ended in the whole body, 100 strong,
with shields, spears, and clubs, escorting him for 10 miles, whooping,
dancing, and singing their war-songs as they went to the village of
Chipatula. Here, while they waited, a headman from the north,
who had been defeated by the Arabs and sought revenge, proposed
that the whole party should be murdered. This was debated, but
opposed by the more responsible men, who said, " These are different
from the Arabs ; "they come with a message of peace and not of
war."

At last Chipatula appeared, an intelligent man of about thirty-
five, with a kind but care-lined face, attired in a cloak of blue cloth,
and a head-dress of red flannel with the head and red beak of a
bird fastened in front. He gave the Doctor a warm welcome, and
frankly stated that he was not the Chief. To him the purpose of
the visit was explained in detail. " Our children," he said, " whom
we have trained and cared for have lately run away to the shore
— will you send them back to us ? "

" We are sorry you have had trouble," replied the Doctor, " but
we are strangers and cannot take part in local quarrels. If we took
these people and sent them back we would be slave -masters, and
we believe that every one is free to live where he pleases. If you
really want them back, why not live at peace with Mankambira ?
Then the people would return."

" Yes ; good."

156 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" We have come to teach the children to read and the men to
work. Look at this " — a table — " this was made by a black
man. This is how he did it," and, taking a saw, the Doctor cut a
piece of wood in two, much to the surprise of those around. " Why
don't you train your cattle to work," he continued, " and save your
hands from being blistered ? "

" We don't know how."

" Would you like an Englishman to come and teach you ? "

" Yes ; but we don't know whether Mombera would like it.
We shall have to consult him first."

Mombera again ! This potentate began more and more to bulk
in the imagination of the Doctor as probably the pivotal personality
on which future relations would depend. He must get into touch
with him. A friendly message was accordingly sent ; and one also
to Mtwaro, and these were cordially reciprocated ; a cow from each
followed, and acknowledged with various gifts.

The Doctor was well satisfied, but receiving a warning that the
party might still be attacked he thought it would not be amiss to
display their power. He brought out two revolvers and a page of
the Spectator ; the latter he fastened to a tree some distance away
and asked Stewart, who was a first-rate shot, to display his skill.
Stewart riddled the sheet. The Doctor then fired six shots in rapid
succession. It was enough ; a new deference and respect appeared
in the attitude of the natives.

" We don't fight," the Doctor said, " except in self-defence,
and haven't fired a shot at a single person since we entered the
country, but "

" The country is yours," they hastily exclaimed. " We are your
children."

Holding worship, the Doctor asked Koyi to repeat the Lord's
Prayer in Zulu. As Koyi was about to begin he heard one of the
carriers whisper to his neighbour, " Who will watch while we shut
our eyes ? "

When the party left, there accompanied them ambassadors
of peace to Mankambira.

Crossing the ridge at Mt. Choma a herd of elephants was
encountered, and two were killed for meat for the carriers. A
singular incident marked this hunt. When the first animal was
shot the carriers fixed their camp beside it. The second, badly
wounded, suddenly burst through the undergrowth near them ;
the men took to their heels, but one tripped and fell. The animal,
screaming with anger at the fleeing men, rushed towards them, came

ZULU POTENTATES 157

to the lad lying on the ground, stepped carefully over him, the blood
dripping on his body, and continued its headlong career. It was
hours before the lad recovered from the shock ; his voice shook as he
said, " If it had not been for God I would have been dead."

Kuta Bay was the farthest point reached on the coast : thence
the party turned southwards, ascending and descending the high
wooded ridges and exploring the country in various directions ; the
only spot suitable for a mission station was one on the slope of
Mt. Kaningina, 900 feet above the Lake, commanding an ex-
tensive view of the Limpassa and Lueia valleys, but not without
its drawbacks.

On arriving at Mankambira's a council of the chief men was held
to hear the proposals for peace. " There may be peace," said the
Doctor after a tiresome day, " but I am somewhat doubtful of it."

A day was spent in a long canoe trip to inspect Nkata Bay, a
small, exquisitely pretty cove flanked by wooded hillocks, which
the Doctor thought might form the harbour for a Kaningina station ;
on returning, they had a difficult passage, the Lake rising suddenly
under a breeze. As each wave came rushing at the canoe the man
at the bow struck it with the flat of his paddle, " to make it pass
below," he said. They arrived at midnight, drenched to the
skin.

At this spot the Doctor bathed in the Lake. When just beyond
his depth his eyes caught a hippo, with a young one on her back,
a short distance away. She eyed him balefully for a moment, then
dived. He struck' out wildly for the shore. When his feet touched
ground again he turned and saw that the hippo occupied the place
he had left. She dived again, and he raced, splashing, to the
beach. On looking round, the hippo was at the spot where he had
stood. That night she came ashore prowling for the victim she had
lost, and received the contents of the Doctor's rifle.

Proceeding south they crossed the Lueia. While standing on
the south bank a crowd gathered, and one bright little girl seated
herself on the side of a canoe within a few yards of the Doctor.
A slight stir made him look round. Where the girl had been there
was a commotion of water ; she had been seized by a croco-
dile and quietly dragged under. The creature remained below
until the child was drowned, and then slowly rose to the surface,
exposing her head and shoulders. The Doctor had his rifle ready
but did not fire : the girl was dead, the animal itself was invisible,
and if the body were afterwards found showing bullet wounds blame
might be attached to him. The crocodile then drew its victim

158 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

ander again. Next morning the body was recovered minus the
head and shoulders.

Taking to the hills the party entered a rough and rugged country
of interminable ridges and valleys. In one of the latter they had an
illustration of the manner in which Africa has, through centuries,
been deforested. Thousands of trees had been cut down to make
room for gardens ; a few days previously, fire had swept over the
valley, and the trunks had been reduced to ash ; their white ghosts
lying on the blackened waste presented a hideous scene of waste
and desolation. So toilsome and treadmill-like grew the march,
now in the hot furnace of the valleys, now in the cold air of the
heights, that the carriers rebelled and finally deserted, leaving the
white men perched on the mountains 3000 feet high. Next day,
however, they returned, and, like penitent children, begged to be
forgiven. Many fertile tracts were seen, but all cleared of human
life by the Ngoni.

Following elephant and buffalo paths they reached Kota Kota
on 23rd October. Jumbe was still friendly in view of a mission
settlement, but the Doctor said he must understand three things :
(1) the Mission would not interfere in local politics ; (2) they were
opposed to the slave trade ; and (3) they would teach the people
about God and the arts of civilization. Jumbe accepted these
terms. At the same moment two women were lying near in slave
sticks and men victims were being marched in.

Stewart was left to examine the hinterland, and the Doctor
proceeded in the Herga for Livingstonia. A gale coming on, he was
compelled to haul up the boat on the beach. Next day, to his
surprise, Stewart rejoined him with the news that Jumbe had accom-
plished a complete volte-face, had worked himself into a passion, and
had refused guides, and ordered his headmen not to assist him in
any way. Leaving the Herga, the party marched south. All
hitherto had kept good health, but with rain pouring in torrents
and the way lying through sand and marsh, illness developed
amongst the men, and the leaders were also fevered. At Mpemba's
they saw the Chief for the first time, a muscular, energetic, deter-
mined-looking man, of the Yao tribe, who received them cordially,
as if seeking to make amends for his former hostility.

Boarding the Ilala they arrived on 9th November at Living-
stonia, after an absence of three months, and a journey of 700
miles. The Doctor was profoundly thankful for the results of the
expedition ; much of the success of it, he felt, was due to Stewart,
who had in every respect been a perfect colleague, and to Koyi,

IN MOMBERA'S CATTLE KRAAL 159

whose services had been invaluable in allaying the suspicions of the
Ngoni. Each carrier received 24 yards of calico, and those who had
done especially well a dress in addition.

XXXV. In Mombera's Cattle Kraal

The journey had increased the Doctor's knowledge of the
geography of Western Nyasa and of the tribes occupying it,
but nowhere had he found that combination of climate, soil, water,
population, and harbour facilities which was required for a permanent
mission site. On the whole, the country was a vast broken tract
covered with tall grass, bush, and thin wood, the principal tree being
the masuko, which, though picturesque in the mass, was unsuited
for building and fit only for fuel. The Doctor did not give up hope,
and was eager to continue and complete the investigation by an
examination of the north end ; the rains, however, came on, and he
had reluctantly to postpone the project.

In his detailed report to the Committee he refrained from re-
commending any precise spot, and suggested a three months' journey
the following dry season to investigate the coast northward and
as far inland as might be found expedient. Meanwhile he proposed
establishing two observation stations, one at Maienga, the other
at Kaningina ; the former, he believed, would prove the more
suitable, though it had serious disadvantages. As soon as the report
was dispatched he selected twenty of the most capable natives
on the Station and sailed for Marenga's. The Chief came to his
call.

" Do you," the Doctor asked, " wish us to stay beside you ? "

Marenga's face beamed his assent.

" Then will you sell us ground for a house and garden ? "

" The country is at your disposal ; choose any site you like."

The Doctor landed Mr. Stewart, Fred, as interpreter, four of the
natives, and a large quantity of stores, and Bandawe, as the station
was called, was begun.

At dawn next morning the Bala proceeded to the mouth of the
Lueia, where the two principal Chiefs, Mankambira and Kongomo,
were summoned. To them the same question was put.

" Why do you ask ? " they said in surprise. " The country is
yours. We cannot tell you to settle here or there."

" We are not robbing you of your country — it is yours."

" You can take whatever land you want," they insisted. " In
any case we give it to you."

1 60 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Accordingly he went on to Nkata. This was the spot where in
iQ75 the people had kept him a hostage while the Chief boarded the
I lata. Now he secured forty carriers without difficulty, and not
one asked how much calico would be given, so great was their faith
in the Mzungu. Kaningina was some 20 miles inland, and thither
he and Riddel marched with Koyi, who, it was hoped, would be of
service in bringing about good relations with the Ngoni. While
building operations were going on he noticed a crowd of some
hundreds of men, women, and children moving about on a nearby
ridge, and asked who they were.

" They are from the Lake shore," was the answer. "As soon
as they knew we were coming they followed us. They are taking
possession of their old gardens and villages."

" And who are these ? " he asked, pointing to a group on
another ridge.

" Ngoni from the hills ; they hail our arrival as a sign of peace."

So friends and foes were meeting in amity on their common
battleground. The Doctor was pleased, and sent word to both
parties to bring their children to school.

From Mombera came the message that he wished the Doctor
to visit him. It was the opportunity the latter had been looking
for, but there was a difficulty. Now that his service in the Mission
promised to be permanent he had made arrangements for Miss
Gray coming out, and obtained leave of absence to meet her at the
coast. He must be back by August to accompany Mr. Stewart in
the proposed trip northwards, and he feared the usual prolonged
delays if he went to Mombera's. Koyi, therefore, was sent up to
assure the Chief that the Doctor would see him as soon as his
engagements allowed. Returning to Marenga's, Stewart and Laws
knelt down and thanked God for the successful inauguration of the
two stations.

Proceeding south with the mail the Doctor conveyed Miller,
who was ill, to Blantyre. On the day after Christmas, as the people
were gathering for the evening meeting, a shot was heard, and next
morning the body of a village woman was found lying in the stream.
Laws and MackUn found two bullet wounds and part of the flesh
cut away. The event profoundly stirred the Station. Dr. Laws
proposed that the Chief of the suspected murderers should be
visited and asked to take up the case, and he, Duff Macdonald,
and Macklin went to his village and obtained a promise that the
matter would be dealt with. One evening the Doctor was asked
his opinion of capital punishment.

The Manchewe

AND

Kaziche
Waterfalls

AT

Livingston i a

The Waters join
at the foot

AND

PROCEED TO

I. ARE NYASA

(p. 271)

The Tent torn by the Lion (p. 273)

A Type of Poka Hut on the High Hills

IN MOMBERA'S CATTLE KRAAL 161

" I have always held," he replied, " that wilful murder should
be punished hy death."

" Then in the event of the Chief not punishing this murderer
what will happen ? "

" It may be necessary for you to act in the matter, but I am
very doubtful of the rightness or policy of such a course. Two
questions suggest themselves : Do your Committee realize what
their instructions regarding civil administration involve ? How
far, as British subjects, are j^ou at liberty to act in this way ? "
Leaving these questions to be debated by the staff, the Doctor left
Blantyre again on nth January along with Mr. F. L. M. Moir and
Miller.

When half-way to the river a native appeared one night and
stated that a white man was lying very ill on the steamer. With-
out a moment's hesitation the Doctor left the others and set off
alone in the darkness along a grass path soaking with dew and
through a district infested with wild beasts, whose cries were often
startlingly near. By 2 a.m. he reached the ship, to find all the crew
quite well.

Proceeding to Bandawe to bring down Stewart to act at Cape
Maclear during his absence, the Doctor found there an urgent
invitation from Mombera. He suspected political motives, but
thinking a visit might be fraught with important results for the
Mission he put aside all personal considerations. Setting out from
Nkata with Stewart and Moir, and picking up Koyi on the way,
he reached the Chief's village after a four days' march. It was
situated on an extensive plateau, the climate of which was cool
and pleasant. Maize gardens dotted the landscape and cattle
seemed abundant. A rainstorm came on as they entered the
village, and Mombera was not to be seen, but his followers crowded
round. There are teachers in the Mission who remember the
scene. " We were children at the time^" says one, " and were
hidden away, because it was feared the white men would hurt us.
I remember crawling between the legs of the old men and staring at
Dr. Laws, who said, ' That is the first child I have seen,' and gave
me two yards of cloth, which were soon taken away from me. The
people believed that Lobarti (Robert = Dr. Laws) was a fish be-
cause he lived on the Lake on a steamer. The visit caused a great
noise throughout the land."

Mombera appeared next afternoon, when a council was held
inside the cattle kraal.

" Bayete" ! " shouted the assembly.

XI

1 62 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

The Doctor saw a short, corpulent man, with a shrewd face,
and the old Zulu ring on his head, who gave him a quick, searching
look. It was a case of two strong men taking each other's measure.
In that glance liking and respect were born. The Chief said, " I
see you," and at once became affable and friendly. He looked
critically at the clothes of the visitors. " Are you ashamed of your
white skins ? " he asked.

The councillors did most of the talking, but Mombera said more
than any other big Chief had done.

" We are disappointed that you have not come and settled with
us," they began. " Why do you live at the Lake ? Can you milk
fish ? "

" We live there because the steamer cannot come to the hills,"
was the Doctor's reply.

" But if you come here we will give you cattle. The Tonga are
under us, though they have rebelled and run away. They say we
are cruel ; so we are, but not to our children. Our children we
must have back. We would have gone and fought and driven the
Tonga into the Lake had you not come and said war is bad. Send
back our children and there will be peace."

" Our orders," said the Doctor, " are to take the gospel to
every creature, to the despised Tonga as well as to the proud
Ngoni. We must have a post on the Lake to give us supplies
of calico and provisions : how could we get those if we lived
here and the Tonga were your enemies and ours ? We have
not come to join in your quarrels, and cannot send back your
children, but we are willing to act as peacemakers. Have patience.
Remember you are the invaders and not the original people of
the country."

" Well, if a white man cannot be sent will you give us a man
like Koyi ? "

" Yes ; in time you will have a teacher."

This appeared to satisfy them and presents were exchanged.
From that moment Mombera placed complete trust in the Doctor.
He often sat and talked with him, was told of the world beyond,
saw picture-books, and heard the story of Divine love. One of his
wives, who had an unmistakable air of distinction, also came and
chatted. She was curious as to the number of wives the Doctor
had, and asked how many cows were given in his country
for one. " We don't buy wives," the Doctor replied. " You
could not get enough cows to buy one ! " At which she was
astonished. Moir was introduced to the Chief as one who loved

IN MOMBERA'S CATTLE KRAAL 163

the Book and who was willing to trade with him in everything
but slaves.

The wild song of warriors one day brought the white men out
of their tents to see a band armed with shields, spears, and clubs
marching behind two who carried the skin of a lion strung on a pole
between them. The creature had been playing havoc amongst the
flocks and herds, and, driving a number of cattle as a bait to its
lair, they waited until it appeared, and then speared and killed
it — not before it had destroyed five full-grown cows. The visitors
were invited to the kraal to witness the celebration of victory, and
seated themselves beside Mombera on an ant-hill. Marching two
deep, the men entered in war attire, chanting and beating their
shields with their spears. Laying the skin at the foot of the ant-hill,
they formed a close column, three deep, and rested their shields on
the ground. A headman walked up and down in front, and then, in
succession, those who had had a share in killing the lion sprang out,
rushed towards the ant-hill, shouting and flourishing their spears,
whilst in the ring of spectators the women sang and clapped their
hands in unison. At the same time a dozen young women, pictur-
esquely decorated with blue and red cloth and beads, moved in front
of the men, with a peculiar stiff gliding gait and an occasional jerk
of the head ; each carried a long wand in her right hand, by which,
with a movement of the wrist, she imparted a trembling motion.
The poet laureate of the tribe next described how the lion had been
killed, and several of the oldest headmen addressed the assemblage.
A general dance followed, in which the young women joined, the
onlookers singing and clapping their hands. As rain began to fall,
the visitors sent for their waterproofs and put them on, a proceeding
which the Chief watched with curious interest. The warriors simply
held their shields over their heads.

After witnessing such a display, the Doctor no longer wondered
at the poor stand which the aboriginal tribes made against the
Ngoni or the dread which the latter had inspired throughout Central
Africa. " To the shore people," he said, " combination seems im-
possible, and it is with the greatest difficulty that any two of them
can be got to work together in anything requiring co-ordinate
movement."

Two Ngoni were ordered to accompany the Doctor back as
the Chief's representatives to see the sights of Livingstonia and
Blantyre and report.

1 64 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XXXVI. The First White Lady at the Lake

Miss Gray proposed that she should travel by the east coast
route, breaking her journey at Naples, where her brother was in
charge of the Church's continental station ; and the Doctor, taking
a short health-holiday, could meet her there. It was to him a
tempting plan, but the problem of Nyasa and its future was weigh-
ing upon his mind : to solve it aright he needed an experience and a
knowledge wider and greater than he yet possessed. South Africa
had been a similar field, and some acquaintance with the conditions
there, and the methods that had proved successful, would be of the
utmost value. Asking Miss Gray to travel via Cape Town and
Port Elizabeth he resolved to take advantage of the opportunity
this would give him to study life and work in Kafraria. " I am
simply trying to do what seems to be my duty," he wrote — duty
was the guiding principle of all his actions.

He left Livingstonia in February 1879, with Riddel, whom he
had invalided home, and the two Ngoni men. On arrival at Blantyre
he found Captain Benzie, who had come to take charge of the llala,
and had brought out from the Doctor's father a sack of potatoes.
Half of those the Doctor handed to Mr. Duncan, the gardener at
Blantyre, who planted them ; they were the first English potatoes
in the country.

He was told the sequel to the Christmas murder. Two men had
been arrested and charged with the crime. On Mr. Macdonald
again applying to the Chief concerned to judge the case according to
native law, the latter declared that jurisdiction went with the
territory and the English were responsible. A native jury was,
accordingly, empanelled, presided over by Dr. Macklin, and the
verdict was death. One of the prisoners escaping, the people
accused the missionaries of interfering with the course of justice,
and clamoured for the immediate execution of the other. In the
Blantyre Journal the entry for 20th February reads :

" Manga was executed by a volley from half a dozen rifles at
nine o'clock in the morning. A thief that we had in the stocks
was taken down as a spectator and was greatly frightened."

This occurred four days previous to the arrival of Dr. Laws,
who was startled at the occurrence. He would not have shot the
man, he said, but held him prisoner and asked the advice of Dr.
Kirk at Zanzibar.

THE FIRST WHITE LADY AT THE LAKE 165

Another entry says :

" James George Macdonald, born at 6.10 p.m. Drs. Macklin
and Laws very attentive, and watched by turns all night."

It was the first white child born in Central Africa, and the
Doctor baptized it. " This," he wrote, " was my first baptism,
and I do not think I ever realized the solemnity of the ordinance as
I did that day. I do not think I ever beheld with such pleasure a
mother's unspeakable joy."

Four days after he left the Station a man was flogged, and died :
in Dr. Macklin's opinion he had a diseased heart.

A rapid journey was made down the river, the new steamer
Lady Nyasa being passed on the way, and in March the Doctor was
at Port Elizabeth, Cape Colony, feeling strange at being amongst
so many white people again. With the object of introducing British
currency into Central Africa, he obtained £25 in threepenny and
sixpenny pieces, and £7, 10s. in copper. At Lovedale, where, he
arrived on 6th April, he learned to his consternation that Miss Gray
had not received his letter of instructions, and still proposed coming
by the Mediterranean and east coast route to Zanzibar. Knowing
the difficulty and peril of such a journey, he sent a message by mail
to Madeira, where the cable then terminated, to be telegraphed
to her, begging her to take the Cape route. This, he fancied, would
reach her in time.

Then he devoted himself to a thorough study of Lovedale
methods. The printing-press was a special attraction, and he
determined to secure one for Livingstonia. Dr. Stewart, who was
at home, opposed the idea, saying that printing could be done
more cheaply at Lovedale ; he also opposed the Doctor's plan for
procuring horses, woolled sheep, and other stock. Perhaps, natur-
ally, he assumed that he had controlling power over Livingstonia ;
but in March the Committee, acquiescing in the Doctor's decision
regarding the Mutual Eligibility Act, and anxious to retain him,
agreed that he should remain a member of the United Presbyterian
body, and be maintained by the Laing Trustees, and appointed him
the official head of the Mission.

The Doctor also wrote to the Committee warmly endorsing
an application by Mr. James Stewart to be placed on the permanent
staff of the Mission. This meant a pecuniary sacrifice to the latter
of nearly £500, but his heart was in the evangelistic and scientific
work in Africa, and the Doctor was eager to have him as a colleague.
" In this notably cantankerous country," he wrote, "we have never

1 66 LAWS OF LIVINGSTON! A

had a cross word between us " ; and he rejoiced when the Committee
appointed Stewart as second in charge.

Another letter went to the Foreign Mission convener discussing
with a remarkable breadth of view the whole conditions on the west
side of the Lake, and the prospect of work amongst the various
tribes. It is interesting for the references to what he called " the
future Livingstonia. The city that is to be — shall it be a Lake
city or on the hills ? " He did not think sufficient data had
been collected to decide, but he inclined to a hill station, in
view of the need for continuous intellectual vigour. " This has
to be borne specially in mind, in view of a training institution
for a future native agency for these regions which, from a
missionary point of view, is one of the first objects towards
which we must work." The next few years he thought would
settle the question.

He heard that Miss Waterston, who had now qualified in medicine
and graduated at Dublin, had been appointed his medical assistant
and was on her way out. This meant that on his trip to the north
end he would have to leave the two ladies shortly after they arrived
at Cape Maclear. He mentioned the fact in a note to Dr. Stewart,
who wrote to the Committee opposing the scheme. " I do not
think it would be very wise, or at least very kind, to leave his wife
and Miss Waterston on their reaching the Station. They might
suffer from imaginary fears if not from realities, even with other
white men on the Station," which indicated that he did not know
the character and courage of these two ladies.

Before leaving Lovedale the Doctor issued a printed appeal " to
all Kafir-speaking Christians in South Africa," asking that they
might constitute themselves an undenominational missionary
society which would support evangelists and teachers and industrial
workers amongst the Ngoni, and that a number should go forth at
once. He had great faith in the South African native. They did
not stand the climate of Nyasa so well as the Europeans, but until
Livingstonia could develop its own native agency they were the
natural teachers and evangelists in Ngoniland. As a result of the
appeal a number agreed to go, but on his arrival from Scotland
Dr. Stewart would not consent to the arrangement on account of
" the backward state of the funds."

Travelling through the Transkei the Doctor made special
inquiry regarding the history of the mission stations, and learnt
that the Chiefs had respected and assisted those missionaries who
did not interfere with their authority, whilst those who grasped

THE FIRST WHITE LADY AT THE LAKE 167

land and power had their work in a great measure thwarted, a fact
he noted to guide him in his future dealings with the Ngoni.

At East London he heard that Miss Gray, not having received
his message, had come, after all, by the eastern route. Hastening to
Quilimane he found that she had arrived, had joined a party which
included two ladies for Blantyre, and had gone up the river in
the care of Dr. Macklin. While at Quilimane he took the oppor-
tunity of inquiring into the connection of the Portuguese with the
slave trade. The impression he formed was that the Government
at Lisbon, and to a great extent the Quilimane authorities, really
did wish an end to be made of the traffic, and did not themselves
carry it on or countenance it. But the natives under their rule at
Quilimane and in the interior were deeply involved in it : so much
so that slaves even held slaves. The Government were aware of the
fact but were powerless to interfere, since any attempt to repress
the traffic issued in rebellion, as had been the case in the previous
year when Mazaro was burned down.

He also carefully studied the political attitude and aspirations of
Portugal, discovering a movement to survey the hinterland as far
as Blantyre and the Lake with the object of laying claim to it. He
wrote at once to the Committee on the subject. " I presume," he said,
" that in the event of any assumption of Portuguese authority being
made in our direction it will be our duty as belonging to the British
nation to protest against it. I hope the Committee will give me as
early as possible their opinion." The letter was forwarded to the
Foreign Office, and a question was asked in Parliament which elicited
the reply that the Portuguese Government disclaimed any such
intention.

Laden with plants and seeds and everything which he thought
might be useful at Nyasa, the Doctor started on the up-river trip,
having as a companion Mr. F. L. M. Moir, as well as Mr. R. King Hall,
son of Admiral Hall, and Mr. Alfred Chirnside, an Australian, who
had come for hunting. War blocked the river and a four days'
delay occurred. Mr. Moir fell dangerously ill, and the Lady Nyasa
struck on a sunken rock and had to be run ashore and unladen. The
patient was landed at Senhora Maria's and there nursed back to
health.

The lovers met at Blantyre and were married in the little
thatched schoolroom on 28th August and reached Livmgstonia on
5th September. Mrs. Laws found the quarters of the Doctor rough
and dreary-looking — a box in one corner, a chest in another, a bare,
rickety table in the centre. By evening the place was transformed,

1 68 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and for the first time the glow of a lamp illuminated the interior
and a white cloth covered the table. When one of the staff came in he
exclaimed, " Why, this is paradise ! " The natives were immensely
interested in her coming, and danced for two whole nights in her
honour.

Mrs. Laws was the first white woman to reach the Lake and to
live on its shores. During these past years of waiting she had had a
considerable, though silent and unknown, part in helping on the
Mission, and now she entered with zest on the task of taking a
practical share in its work. Within three days she was in the school
— she was a born teacher — and was hardly ever out of it except
when she was on her back with fever, to which she proved susceptible.
Picking up the language with ease she began to train the women and
girls, held a sewing-class, and had them turning out shirts and jackets
in a few weeks. It was no light task, for her pupils were gipsies of
the wildest type.

Her one anxiety was to avoid recognition, and a special request
was sent home to the Committee that no notice should be taken of
her activities in any form whatever. " The work," wrote the
Doctor, " is done without any desire for publicity." It was the
same spirit which prompted him to minimize his own efforts, and he
was often annoyed to find extracts from his letters published at
home. " I have done so little compared with what there is to do
and what has been done by others that any appearance of proclaim-
ing my work from the housetop is distasteful to me in the extreme."
The protest of Dr. Stewart did its work. The Committee would
not forbid the Doctor proceeding on the northern trip ; they left it
to his judgment, but reminded him that he was responsible for the
safety of the ladies, and suggested that Stewart might make the
journey and survey the country between the two lakes.

Stewart accordingly left on ioth September with Koyi. At
Nkata he found Mr. John Moir, who had been on a long march to the
headwaters of the Loangwa. As soon as he saw him he said, "The
question of who is to be my companion is settled." The three men
proceeded to Mombera's, but were received with silent hostility.
Neither the Chief nor any of his headmen would see them. " It
seems," Stewart wrote to Laws, " that they do not wish to have
anything to do with us, that they are tired of waiting, and intend
now to take their own way, which seems to be war ere long. Evil
counsels are in the ascendant." Returning to Karonga's at the
north end they met the Ilala with the Doctor and Mrs. Laws, and
carriers and provisions. A few days previously the Keith Johnston

THE BLANTYRE CONTROVERSY 169

expedition had passed on its way to Tanganyika and left word that
its leader had died and that Joseph Thomson was now in charge.
Stewart met Thomson when he reached Tanganyika. The latter
was lying fevered in a hut when he heard the sound of guns, and
rushed out to see a white man who, advancing to meet him, touched
his cap and with a twinkle said, " Mr. Thomson, I presume ? "
Recovering from his surprise Thomson answered, " Yes, that is my
name, but, good gracious, who are you ? " " My name is Stewart."
" Ah, a Scot, of course ! "

The news about Mombera was ominous, and the Doctor feared
the situation would not be improved by the decision he had now
arrived at to withdraw from Kaningina. The position there had
been growing more and more untenable : every one disliked the
place ; the people were deserting it through fear of war, food was
scarce, the road to the coast was impassable during the rains. In
October, Miller was ordered to abandon the station. It was with
the utmost regret that the Doctor took this step, for he realized the
importance of maintaining even a slight link with the Ngoni. But
he was handicapped by difficulties not of his own making. He had
pressed for Lovedale recruits, for only such were serviceable in
Ngoniland ; a bare handful of the people there understood Chin-
yanja, and that imperfectly. Koyi was now away home on furlough,
and there was no one to take his place. Had Dr. Stewart per-
mitted the departure of the volunteers all would have been well
and Ngoniland would have been occupied. To visit Mombera
without an interpreter and without a teacher to be stationed per-
manently would be futile. All he could do was to watch the
situation closely and wait his opportunity. " What we need to do,"
he wrote, " is to push forward right into the country rather than hold
half-way posts, and to take an as-sure-as-death-grip of the site when
we do." Meanwhile he recommended that Bandawe be made the
central station and base for the work in the hinterland.

XXXVII. The Blantyre Controversy

There was trouble at Blantyre. A letter from Mr. Duff
Macdonald stated that the rebel headmen of a friendly chief had
attacked a mission party and plundered the goods ; and some days
afterwards Macdonald himself, and another member of the staff,
were fired on. " What do you think we should do ? " he asked
Laws.

" The general principle, I think," the latter replied, "is to avoid

170 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

bloodshed and any line of action likely to lead to it. . . . For your
own sake be cautious. To overpower the natives with the arms
you have would be a comparatively easy matter compared with
fighting the public at home for the rest of your life " — wise words
which, if their spirit had been heeded, might have saved Macdonald
his position.

Dr. Macklin also wrote asking the Doctor's opinion on the matter
of civil jurisdiction. The latter thought the choice lay between an
entirely passive policy and a regular colony. In the one case the
staff might be murdered and their goods stolen ; in the other they
would have a civil constitution suited to the habits, customs, and
modes of thought of the tribes, which, administered by Christian
men, would be an unspeakable boon to the country. But whether
the missions should undertake this work was another question.
" Personally my opinion is that the less a missionary has to do with
the government of the country as an active agent himself in its
administration, the closer will he get to the hearts of the people and
the greater influence will he have on their lives." His idea was that
the Trading Company should take up the work as a temporary ex-
pedient until proper government was installed. In this same letter
to Macklin he referred to the " sickening sectarian differences " in
Scotland : " We are well rid of them here, but their existence at
home always leaves the danger that their shadow will turn up here
in an uncomfortable fashion." Which proved to be the case.

The two hunters, Chirnside and Hall, had been greatly exercised
over the Blantyre assumption of civil jurisdiction, and on arriving at
Cape Maclear they asked Dr. Laws what he thought of the cases of
punishment which they recited. Some of these were new to him,
and with his usual caution he expressed no opinion on what was an
ex-parte statement, endeavouring rather to lessen the animus they
exhibited towards the Blantyre staff. Some time later reports began
to appear in the South African and home newspapers regarding these
cases and caused great uneasiness amongst the friends and sup-
porters of the two missions. Hearing something of this the Doctor
wrote to a friend : " Mistakes have been made in Blantyre, no doubt,
but no one is infallible, and I am sorry to find that there is in some
quarters a tendency to exalt Livingstonia by throwing mud at
Blantyre. We have often difficult enough questions to face here,
and only God's gracious providence has guided us through some of
the perils which have given trouble at Blantyre."

The Livingstonia Committee took up the matter again and asked
the advice of Sir Arthur H. Gordon, who told them that if by a wild

THE BLANTYRE CONTROVERSY 171

stretch of fancy one of the flogged men were to prosecute his
assailants in the Supreme Court of Cape Colony, under the Foreign
Jurisdiction Act they would probably be convicted of illegal assault.
As to their idea of a consul, such an official, he said, would have no
more authority over the natives than the missionaries — and they
had absolutely none.

With the prescience that he often displayed the Doctor wrote to
Dr. Smith, the Secretary of the Foreign Mission Committee, a long
letter in which he gave a sketch of the position of the mission in
relation to the natives. This was in view of the removal to Bandawe,
where there was no central native authority to which disputes
could be referred for decision. He began with an account of the
free grant of land at the Cape by Mponda, who, like all the other
Chiefs, had regarded the Mission as entirely independent and self-
governing. The impression that it was living under the wing of a
powerful Chief was not correct. Its territory was small and well
defined. But, at Bandawe, where the conditions would be much
more complex, what was the policy to be ? He put it thus : " Is
the Livingstonia Mission to be regarded as a mission like the early
ones to the South Sea Islands, trusting to God for protection, though
outwardly at the mercy of the natives when they think nt to rob or
murder its members, or is it to be regarded as a Christian Colony,
having its foreign relationship and internal administration ? "
He would not admit that the latter would be any less Christian than
the former — he thought it might show the practical benefits of
Christianity more" rapidly, but he questioned whether it would be
possible to get the Christian public at home to comprehend this.
It was a difficult matter for the Committee, he knew, to decide, but
he felt they should realize his position. At any moment a murder
might be committed and he would be face to face with the question
of inflicting punishment. They were like an army on the march
in which punishment for crimes had to be short, sharp, and decisive.
" It must be borne in mind that to banish a man here means most
probably that he will fall into the hands of the slave-trader, and
thus we would practically adopt a native mode of getting rid of some
kinds of criminals and give our sanction to the infamous slave trade
which we, by our words and actions, loudly condemn."

Serious crime was more likely to happen at Bandawe, to judge
from the conditions already existing at the observation station.
Man-stealing, slave-raiding, squabbles, fighting went on perpetually.
The layman-missionary in charge was daily being appealed to and
was slipping into the position of an autocratic chief, administering

172 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

justice, inflicting punishment, and generally mixing himself up in
local affairs. It was an extraordinary situation : here was a solitary
white man wielding the power of life and death over a savage people
whose language he did not understand and whose fierce passions were
unrestrained by any moral principle. When the Doctor learnt
what was going on he wrote as an instruction : " When any dispute
is brought to the Station for decision it is right to advise on the
matter if possible ; but in matters entirely inter-native the executive
function should be left to themselves, not undertaken by the Mission."

It was this state of things which made him uneasy as to the
future. At Cape Maclear every member had been tested and was
bound down to respect the rules of the Station and submit to the
discipline enforced, and increasing watchfulness and firmness had
hitherto repressed any tendency to riotous conduct. But it would
be different where petty Chiefs were living in juxtaposition and civil
war and terror was rampant. His own view was that the exercise
of magisterial functions would hinder his work as a missionary.
" In the eyes of the native the head of the Mission is apt to be looked
upon more in the character of Chief than as a teacher and friend to
whom they can come for instruction and guidance. The com-
bination, of course, does not produce the same jar in their minds
which it would probably do in ours, because they are accustomed to
their own Chiefs exercising both functions. They are apt to look
upon me when I visit them as the Chief of the English, and though
this may command respect and gain a hearing it prevents me
getting at them in the unreserved manner I would like."

He came to the conclusion that the best solution of the problem
would be for the Trading Company to take over a large tract of
territory at Bandawe and act as administrators, or, as an alter-
native, that Mr. Stewart should be invested by the British Govern-
ment with authority as a consul. With regard to settling sub-
stations among the Ngoni his policy was fixed : it was to respect
the authority of the Chiefs who were strongly established, but to
secure from them the right of refuge on the Mission Station. In
all this he had no desire, he said, to shirk any responsibility, nor
did he think that in dispensing justice he was lowering himself as a
missionary : he felt simply that it hindered the evangelistic side
of his service.

While this communication was on its way to Scotland the
Blantyre and Livingstonia Committees there were conferring.
Dr. MacRae, of the Church of Scotland, held, as he had always
done, that a mission should be iegarded as the nucleus of a State,

THE BLANTYRE CONTROVERSY 173

and that civil jurisdiction should be undertaken by its members.
The Livingstonia Sub-Committee opposed this conception : such
an assumption of power would be inconsistent with the missionary
character of their enterprise ; but as some restraining principle
was necessary they approved of Dr. Stewart's plan of deportation.
Nevertheless, they realized that considerable latitude must be
allowed to the staff to exercise their discretion in special cases.
The Church of Scotland Committee fell in with this view, and a
letter, exceedingly kind in spirit and wise in its instructions, was
sent out to Mr. Macdonald. " Your position," it definitely stated,
" must be understood as excluding the power and jurisdiction
known as self-government."

The matter might well have ended there, but Mr. Chirnside
published in London a pamphlet in which he formulated in detail
a series of charges of inhumanity against the Blantyre mission-
aries, the chief of which were based on those already referred
to. This brought the subject prominently before the Press and
the public ; the attention of Parliament and Government was
called to it. and an acute controversy followed. The Livingstonia
Committee, having Dr. Laws' letter now before them, adhered to
their former decision as to deportation, although it meant the slave-
stick or a spear-thrust and made the missionary an accomplice in
the act. They, however, again approached the Government and
asked for the appointment of a consular authority, mentioning
Mr. Stewart, as the Doctor had suggested ; but Sir Charles Dilke,
Under-Secretary to the Foreign Office, gave them no satisfaction.

In order to investigate the various flogging cases the Church
of Scotland Assembly dispatched a commission to Blantyre. It
reported to the Commission of Assembly in March 1881. That
body bitterly deplored the practices which had been in vogue,
condemned the assumption of civil jurisdiction, and recalled Mr.
Duff Macdonald and the other agents implicated. Instructions
were also sent out on the same lines as originally furnished to the
Livingstonia staff.

Incidentally some of the responsibility for what had occurred
was thrown by the Commission on the Livingstonia leaders, a
charge which caused much annoyance to friends of the Mission
but was in due time rebutted by both Dr. Laws and Dr. Stewart
the former receiving a communication from the Committee ex-
pressing their gratification with his " eminently satisfactory ex-
planation," and assuring him of " their confidence and prayerful
sympathy in his most difficult position." To the Doctor the whole

174 LAWS OF LIVINGSTON! A

episode was extremely distasteful ; he urged that no comparisons
should be instituted between the two Missions, and that whatever
required to be said in the interests of truth and justice should be said
in a generous and Christ -like spirit.

For a time there was a coolness between the respective staffs,
and less coming and going, but the feeling speedily wore away
and the old kindly relations were resumed and never after-
wards broken. Blantyre rose out of its trouble pure, strong, and
courageous, and entered upon a course of development under
devoted and sagacious leaders which made it ultimately one of
the greatest mission forces in the non-Christian world.1

XXXVIII. Fugitives

Closely allied to the question of civil jurisdiction was that of
the relation of the Mission to the slave trade and the right of the
missionaries to receive runaway slaves. " Am I to be a pacifist
in this also, or am I to interfere ? " the Doctor asked himself. He
was inclined to agree with the home instructions, though it was not
always easy, as an incident at this time showed.

He had given Gunn, the artisan-evangelist, and Ross a holiday,
and while on shore not far from Mponda's village they had come
across a slave caravan which included women and children.
Mponda was then making up a slave gang for the coast, and this
party was evidently on its way to join it. While the two white
men talked quietly to those in charge their carriers took the yokes
off the slaves and set them free. The drivers made no protest
and seemed glad to get away without being punished. Only the
women accompanied Gunn and Ross to the Station.

The Doctor could not but express disapproval of the proceeding
as a clear violation of the instructions of the Committee, but on
reporting the matter to that body he pointed out the very difficult
position in which the missionaries were placed :

" However much non-interference is correct theoretically — and
I uphold it as the best order that could have been given on the
subject — there is still in the breast of every free-born Briton such
a hatred of the horrid traffic in human flesh and blood that when
one comes across a gang of poor, half-starved, way-worn fellow-
creatures on their way to the coast, and is morally certain that a

1 As late as 1904 the L.M.S. found it necessary to pass a resolution that
" in the judgment of the Directors no missionary should be involved either
directly or indirectly in the flogging of adult natives for offences of any kind."

FUGITIVES 175

word from his lips or a flash from his eye is enough to set them all
at liberty, need it be wondered at that the temptation to do what is
in the moment good for these creatures should overcome the patient
waiting which the judgment of calmer moments pronounces to be
the better and surer plan to obtain ultimate success ? "

The Committee neither condemned nor condoned the action of
Ross and Gunn ; they merely expressed satisfaction that no collision
had occurred, and recommended the greatest caution in future.

On the matter of giving asylum to fugitive slaves the Doctor
had advanced from the simple policy adopted in the earlier days,
and he now objected to receive a slave simply because he was a
slave. " Even though the British Government were in possession
of the country it would be folly for them to extinguish domestic
slavery all at once. Popular opinion must advance a long way
before the country is fit for such legislation." Nor would he
receive a runaway on the strength of the statements he made.
Slaves were, as a rule, a demoralized and vicious class who intro-
duced most of the trouble into the little community, and he would
have been glad to reject them all were it not that he wished to get
hold of the children. His experiences made him sympathize with
Moses in his task of leading the children of Israel. " With this
generation I can do nothing. I shall have to wait for a new genera-
tion before entering the promised land ! "

To the staff at the various stations he gave the following
instructions :

" The original " instructions that active interference with the
slave trade by force initiated on our side is to be avoided, must be
strictly complied with. In the case of a slave coming to a mission
station for refuge and protection, let him have it on condition that
no crime can be proved against him within a month after his
arrival ; and that he is willing to work out his ransom. This should
be, in a given case, the price paid for the slave by his master, or, if
this cannot be ascertained, then the current prices of slaves in
the district. When the price is paid for, it should be paid over to
the master on application by him for it."

The idea of compensating the slave-holder he adopted from the
example of Britain. To make a fugitive work out his ransom was
also a test of his sincerity ; if he did not think his liberty worth
a little self-denial to procure, he was, in the Doctor's opinion,
unworthy of it.

The Committee approved generally of these rules, and again
referred to their original instructions. Soon afterwards the Doctor

176 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

received a friendly letter from Consul O'Neill, Captain Elton's
successor, stating that, acting on the instructions of the Foreign
Office, he had informed the Blantyre missionaries that they had no
legal right to receive fugitive slaves. This, he added, would natur-
ally also apply to the Livingstonia staff. " It is certainly our
desire," the Doctor replied, " to do nothing contrary to the laws
of our country " ; but he urged the home Committee to secure the
right of sanctuary, so that any person coming to the Station for
refuge should not be molested while there. This would give the
missionary time to intercede with his Chief, for he was thinking
not so much of slaves as of those fleeing from the poison ordeal.

The Committee accordingly communicated with the Foreign
Office, and from Lord Granville received the following letter :

" The only rights which missionaries, or persons similarly situ-
ated, can claim, are those which are conceded to them by the Chief
in whose country they settle. Considering the strong feelings of
resentment which a direct interference in disputes between slaves
and their masters is certain to excite, Her Majesty's Government
can only advise the exercise of great caution, tact, and patience in
order to gain in time the noble objects which the Free Church of
Scotland has in view."

XXXIX. The Shadow Again

The arrival of Miss Waterston in November to assist in the
medical work, and manage a boarding-school for girls, proved but a
slight incident in the history of the Mission, for, finding insufficient
scope for her abilities, she resigned and went to Lovedale, and later
to Cape Town, where she established a successful practice. A greater
blank was caused by the departure of Macfadyen, Simpson, and
Miller, the comrades of the Doctor from the beginning, all good and
true men and strenuous workers even in the enervating atmosphere
of the tropics. Macfadyen ultimately became a doctor in Glasgow,
and Simpson a planter in the Shire Highlands.

Herbert Rhodes also passed from the scene, but in a tragic way.
He had brought up a quantity of rum and other articles for trading
purposes, and while sitting with Ramo-Ku-Kan in a hut, the spirit
by some means caught fire, and Rhodes was enveloped in flames and
severely burned, dying some hours later.

Towards the end of the year the Doctor had a sharp attack of
fever, but this did not prevent him carrying out the instructions
of the Committee to explore north-east Nyasa. Mrs. Laws accom-

THE SHADOW AGAIN 177

panied him as she often did on his trips up and down the Lake.
He sought for a harbour along the base of the Livingstone Moun-
tains, but there were only open bays. In some of these he saw
villages built on stilts ; and on one of the platforms a cow was
quietly feeding. Farther south he discovered a well-sheltered
anchorage and called it Amelia Bay, after Mrs. Laws' sister. A
storm developing, he ran for the Rombashi to pick up the spoils of
F. L. M. Moir's hunting ; he had shot twenty-five elephants. The
Doctor took on board 1456 lb. of ivory and a young elephant,
which in the rough weather going south became very sick. It
recovered when the vessel was storm-stayed for two days, and
became very lively. Fed " on the bottle " it sucked up a bowl of
milk through a filter tube. The natives seemed astonished at the
sight of an elephant allowing itself to be so easily handled. The
animal reached Blantyre, but died there.

Searching for a rhinoceros, the Doctor got nothing but ticks,
which, during three stormy days when he had to stay by the wheel,
bored into his legs and brought on ulcers. Mrs. Laws, though not
a good sailor, was always one of the bravest and pluckiest on these
occasions, assisting the Doctor in every way, and sleeping con-
tentedly on the open hatch : more than once when the rain was
lashing down she covered the engine works with her skirts to keep
them dry. One dark, tempestuous night the Doctor went toward
where she stood clinging to the rigging. " Well . . . afraid ? "
he asked. " No ! " " Why ? " " Because you are at the helm ! "

On one of its next voyages down the river the Ilala struck a
boulder in the Upper Shire, indicating that the level of the water
continued to fall. The Doctor predicted that if the process went
on Lake Pamalombe would become a marsh like Morambala,
the Upper Shire become unnavigable, and the Ilala be confined to
the Lake. Mr. Stewart's view was that there was nothing un-
natural or permanent in the situation, and that it was probably due
to a smaller rainfall ; but the Doctor proved to be right.

The ensuing rainy season was unusually unhealthy, and recalled
the circumstances of the pioneer year. The Doctor and Mrs. Laws
and the others were subject to a low tedious fever which enfeebled
the body and wore out the brain, making them less able to resist
the severer attacks that came with the change-over of the seasons.
Food was also scarce, the boys and girls being glad to gather the
locusts which came in clouds, strip off their wings and fry and boil
the bodies and eat them with a little salt, while soap, flour, and other
European supplies had run done. To add to the difficulties one fowl-

12

178 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

house after another was raided by leopards, which killed as many
as forty fowls in a night. On account of the people being afraid
to move out after dark, the native services were held at an earlier
hour.

Returning from Blantyre and suffering from fever, he found
Captain Benzie, of the Ilala, seriously ill at Matope. He took charge
of the steamer and pushed on by day and night to Livingstonia,
watching the patient the while, and doing all he could for his
comfort. The case was hopeless. Towards the end the captain's
mind cleared, and he asked the Doctor to bring a Bible and read
the 23rd Psalm. He was buried beside Dr. Black at the foot
of the granite boulder. "A good quiet man," said the Doctor;
" one who faithfully discharged his duty."

In April Mr. Gunn succumbed to blackwater fever, which
developed with frightful rapidity. All night the Doctor sat up with
him, and next day endeavoured by every means to reduce the
temperature which was literally burning him out. In his delirium
Gunn relapsed into the Gaelic of his youth, and sometimes broke into
a snatch of song. " When he died," said the Doctor, " strong men
shed tears whose eyes I had never seen wet before." On the follow-
ing morning at daybreak, some three to four hundred natives were
sitting in front of the house with their hands on their mouths in mute
sorrow. " If any eulogy were needed on his life and work it was
furnished by the presence of these people." As the Ilala was hourly
expected from the river, the burial was kept back for her arrival,
but in her continued absence the body had to be interred. When
next morning the steamer came gliding into the bay, her flags as
usual went up to the masthead. Then, as if the Union Jack on
shore at half-mast had been observed, there was a momentary
stir, and slowly the flags fluttered down, and remained also at
half-mast in silent sympathy. When Stewart came on shore and
heard the news, he sat and cried like a child. Gunn had been a
most useful member of the staff, so useful that the Doctor had
sought and obtained for him a larger salary. The latter was much
moved by the event. " Five graves at Livingstonia and I am
spared ! God grant me new zeal, enthusiasm, and plodding earnest-
ness and perseverance."

On Sunday the Doctor was worn out, and so dull and heavy
in mind that he could not put two ideas together, and he did
what he had never done before : he had resort to another man's
brain, giving Spurgeon's 1500th sermon, and speaking to him-
self as well as to his little flock. For some time he and Mrs. Laws

THE FIRST CONVERT 179

had to carry on the Sunday school and the day school in addition
to their own duties. They had been repeatedly urged by their
friends to take furlough, but the Doctor pled for delay in the in-
terests of the work. " I want to see Bandawe started first, then
there will be something to appeal for."

These deaths gave a painful shock to the friends of the Mission,
and caused Dr. Stewart to send to the Committee a strong letter
of remonstrance and reproof for not changing the site ; he stated
that until some decision was arrived at, he would delay the return
of Koyi and the dispatch of more workers. The Convener, how-
ever, pointed out that Dr. Stewart had postponed the settlement of
Bandawe and Ngoniland by not sending out the native converts
pressed for by Dr. Laws, and gently hinted that the relation of
Lovedale to Livingstonia should now be one of co-operation and not
of control. Dr. Laws admired his former colleague too much to
take umbrage at his attitude ; he even suggested that Dr. Stewart
should be allowed to revisit the Lake, and examine the Bandawe
site in order that the staff might have the benefit of his experience.
But he also told the Committee that they were not going to get rid
of fever by removing the Station to another place on the Lake,
since no part of the coast enjoyed immunity from it.

XL. The First Convert

A census of the Station taken in 1880 showed that the little
community consisted of 141 men, 202 women, 119 girls, and 128 boys
— 590 in all. Life moved on so quietly and slowly that an onlooker
would have thought no advance was being made. Progress was
marked by almost imperceptible incidents or by a slight develop-
ment in the character of the work. The advent in the school of
eight boys from Marenga's was an event. " I trust the Ilala will
bring many more such cargoes," said the Doctor ; " it is a develop-
ment I have looked forward to ever since I came." These boys
were sent by their parents for two months, that they might test the
intentions of the English and return and satisfy them that all was
well. There was courage in the act, for the idea was prevalent that
the salt meat which the missionaries took out of casks was black
boys and girls who had been lured to the Station and killed and
preserved.

There were now five different tribes represented in the school
and an equal number of languages spoken, though Chinyanja was
generally understood. The Doctor loved the lads ; he found them

180 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

obedient, kind to one another, and generous, sharing with each other
whatever gift of food was given to them. He watched the growth
of their character with anxious solicitude ; but knowing their diffi-
culties and temptations wrote about them with diffidence, and
never sought to bring them forward in any public way in case of
disappointment and failure — he was never sure even of the best.
One evening when the sacrament of the Lord's Supper was being
observed at the English service he gave an invitation to the boys
and girls to participate. " This," he said, " is a rite not restricted
to any nation or colour." Nineteen boys and nine girls lesponded.

Two of the boys became apprentices in the carpenter's shop.
One was promoted to buy the native produce and measure out the
food for the scholars and keep an account of his dealings. Another
was set to work in the store department to look after the ground-nuts
which provided the oil for the //a/a ; this was a reward for good
work in school and meant to be a stimulus to others. Three of the
bigger boys became monitors. These he gave one shilling per month,
with which they clothed themselves ; as they advanced and earned
more they bought their own soap and then their quilt and blanket.
The handicraft work had become more elaborate : cabinets for the
dispensary, house-fittings, windows, frames, and doors, and common
furniture were now being made. Other young men had become
sawyers, brickmakers, sailors, and enginemen.

But the lad of promise was Albert Namalambe\ whom the
Doctor had been watching closely for some time— one of the
Nyanja servants of Ramo-Ku-Kan's sons who had elected to
remain after the latter went back. A diligent scholar, he had
become dux of the school and then head monitor, although a boy
of nine or ten in Scotland would have surpassed him in literary
acquirements. Gradually the Doctor handed the Bible lesson over
to him. " I have listened," he said, " to some of his appeals to the
scholars to believe in Jesus and obey God which for pointed earnest-
ness I could not wish to see excelled." Albert began to take part
in the native meetings, and often he and the other lads would sing and
pray in the hall to a late hour. By and by the Doctor took him
to the out -stations, where he helped in the services and gave many
a straight and fearless talk to the people, much to the Doctor's
delight. " They can find plenty of excuses," he said, " to ignore the
white man's teaching, but there is no way of escape from Albert's
searching words."

The boys were accustomed to take the Station boat to Mpango's,
but it occurred to the Doctor that this was associating in their

THE FIRST CONVERT 181

minds a European agency with the spread of the Gospel, and wishing
to impress upon them that native modes of travel were equally
serviceable he directed them on one occasion to use a canoe. All
except Albert seemed afraid of spoiling their white Sunday pants and
a crew of Bandawe' lads had to be requisitioned. Always neat and
tidy, Albert was also thrifty. Five shillings in threepenny pieces
were stolen from his pocket, and fearing further thefts, he brought
17s. 3d. to the Doctor and asked him to take care of it. The Doctor,
who was surprised at the amount, opened an account for him, and
this was the beginning of the Savings Bank connected with the
Mission.

Never seeking to influence Albert towards making a definite
decision he waited patiently for the spontaneous surrender. It
came in February 1881. One day he said to the Doctor, " I have
made up my mind to live as a Christian and wish to profess my faith
in obedience to our Lord's command. My only doubt is whether I
am fit, and I want you to decide."

" Albert," replied the Doctor, much moved, " your daily life is
the answer."

He was baptized in the crowded schoolroom on 25th March, a
red-letter day, as the Doctor observed, in the history of the Mission.
The Doctor explained the ordinance, and then Albert, in a humble
and respectful but manly way, told the people how he had been led
to obey God's law and to witness to his faith, and ended by
pleading earnestly with all to give themselves to Christ.

During the Doctor's absences Albert conducted many of the
services, and when the sacrament of the Lord's Supper was observed
he was one of the little company of seven who sat down at the Table.

Other boys were groping after the light. One prayed for
months three times a day, wrestling with God to obtain peace and
to enjoy the same happiness that Albert possessed. He went to
the Doctor. " Why," he said, " am I not so happy in heart as I
ought to be ? " The Doctor endeavoured to give him further
instruction and knelt with him in prayer. Others, again, did well
for a time and then were caught in the maelstrom of inherited habit
and left the Doctor disillusioned and sore.

With the object of improving their physique he endeavoured to
interest them in English games, but they showed no keen desire to
play : it seemed too much like violent and unnecessary exertion.

The boys were on the whole of a higher type than the girls, but
the latter proved skilful in their own line : the sewing-class sent into
the store as many as fifteen and twenty dresses per week ; while

1 82 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

others became adept at washing, ironing, and similar household
duties. More important still, Mrs. Laws was teaching them habits
of cleanliness, neatness, and punctuality which had previously been
foreign to their nature.

The medical work was steadily increasing. The Doctor never
cared to give statistics, since they savoured of boasting, but he re-
cognized that the people who supported the Mission had a right
to know the facts and he accordingly began to keep a list of his cases.
In 1880 he had 776 patients, 495 of whom were new, the others had
returned for treatment. They were now coming from distant dis-
tricts : one woman was brought from Chikusi's ; another was
carried twenty miles to the Lake shore and then paddled in a canoe
to the Station. An interesting case was that of a woman who had
attempted to kill a snake ; it spat into her eye and an ulcer developed
on the corona — the Doctor himself had a narrow escape from such a
danger, a snake in the store spitting into his face and the saliva
landing on his cheek just beneath the eyes. There were also
numerous surgical cases originating in bullet wounds and clubbing.

In his spare time he steadily continued his translation work.
He finished St. Mark, begun five years before, and again revised it,
with the class of senior boys, for the fifth or sixth time, for he was
never satisfied with any piece of work unless it were as perfect as
possible. In February 1881 he sent the MS. away to Lovedale to
be printed. " God bless it," he said ; " to Him be all the glory."
The first edition of 1000 copies on its journey up-river was destroyed
in an attack made by the natives on a Portuguese station. At the
same time he was busy with St. John and St. Matthew and his
dictionary of Chinyanja ; and in view of the work at Bandawe he
had begun Chitonga, had the nouns classified, a table of concords
ready, and a vocabulary of 500 of the most useful words gathered.

A part of his work which few ever took into account, but which
formed one of his most irksome duties, was the business corre-
spondence of the Station. The mail went down the river to Quili-
mane every two months — it cost £10 each time — and he had always
a large number of letters to write and accounts to make up. In
order to accomplish the task he had sometimes to give the school
a holiday and sit on until two and three in the morning. The
up-mail always brought scores of letters and papers, and caused a
sleepless night at the Station.

He was at this time brought into contact with the Universities
Mission, which had been working its way inland from Zanzibar
towards the Lake. One day a native came with the news that a

FAILURE OR SUCCESS? 183

white man bound for Livingstonia had arrived in a canoe on the
other side of the peninsula. The Ilala was sent for him, and when
he arrived, he proved to be the Rev. W. P. Johnson from Mataka's.
There had been a famine in his district, he had run short of food,
and had been reduced to a single meal of beans per day ; in his
dilemma he made for Livingstonia, travelling through the rains
with a boy and no equipment but a pot. He was in a low state of
health, and suffered from severe ulcers on the back of his hands.
The Doctor was a shrewd judge of character, and saw that here was
a remarkable man, singularly brave, simple, selfless, and devout.
He remained until his sores were healed, took part in the services,
and visited the out-stations. Admonishing him to take better care
of himself, the Doctor supplied him with provisions and carriers,
and conveyed him down to Mponda's, whence he intended footing
it through the unexplored region between that point and his station.
This was the beginning of a lifelong friendship between the two.

XLL Failure or Success ?

In March 1881 came the letter from the Home Committee
sanctioning the establishment of Bandawe experimentally as the
principal port on the Lake, and whatever sub-stations in the high-
lands the Doctor might deem necessary. James Stewart was also
commissioned to undertake the construction of a road to Lake
Tanganyika, 10 feet wide, Mr. Stevenson giving £4000 for the
purpose, and also to establish a station on the plateau. The
Doctor's first act was to order 30,000 yards of calico and 5 cwt. of
beads, valued at £500, as a fund to begin building operations ; his
next to occupy Bandawe on a settled basis. On the 29th, accom-
panied by Mrs. Laws and a band of workmen, he left Cape Maclear.
It was a morning of exceeding beauty. All the staff, the scholars,
and the labourers gathered on the beach. As the steamer swung
slowly round, her flag was dipped three times by way of farewell, and
cheers broke spontaneously from the assemblage. Looking on the
row of substantial buildings, the Doctor said to himself, " Visitors
ignorant of our past history will criticize the appearance of the
place — these permanent brick houses, stores, and school, they will
say, were too expensive. But they have all served a real purpose,
and they will still be useful, for work will always be carried out
here."

Up in the jungle on the hillside the baboons sat and witnessed

1 84 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the departure, and their raucous barking was more like jeering
laughter than ever. It seemed to say, " We told you so." And
in Scotland many human beings counted the Mission a failure.
They tabulated the first five years by methods of book-keeping :

Liabilities. Assets.

5 European graves. I convert.

5 years' expenditure, ^20,000. 1 abandoned station.
5 years' hardship and toil.

A single Christian, one station which had proved a white man's
grave, given up ; and everywhere seething masses of heathenism,
slave drives, war raids, tribal fights, and poison ordeals. Surely it
was a pitiful fiasco !

So ready are men to base their judgment on appearances and
to estimate moral progress by outward prosperity, forgetting that
the things which are seen are temporal, and that the things which
are not seen are eternal. Cape Maclear was a complete success.
It had been the right and natural place for the first Station ; had
it been planted elsewhere, the whole Mission might have ended in
disaster ; it had proved a safe observation post and a quiet train-
ing-ground, away from the main lines of native activity and traffic,
where the little community had been free from entanglements with
Chiefs and people ; it had enabled a permanent footing to be
gained for Christianity ; it had opened up Central Africa to civiliza-
tion and trade. Having served its purpose as a base, it had now to
be relinquished in face of a further advance and a new phase of
operations.

Without Cape Maclear there might have been no Livingstonia
Mission and no British Nyasaland.

PART THREE
THE YEARS OF PERIL

I. New Conditions

The Mission was facing a new and different set of conditions.
From being situated in a secluded backwater of the Lake it had
come into the open and planted itself in the midst of a teeming
population, where it was in immediate touch with the fierce tribal
forces of savage Africa.

Bandawe was a point on the eastern shore where the level
sands, stretching for many miles, rose into higher ground, and then
into a projecting conical hill called Makusi, covered with great
masses of loose rocks and overrun with tangled vegetation. The
beach immediately to the south — where Dr. Livingstone landed —
sloped up to a height of 107 feet, and it was here, along the top
of the ridge, that the Station was ultimately established. Under-
foot was a deep grey sand which made walking difficult, and a
hard road impossible. The plain behind was a wilderness of tall
grass, bush, and cassava gardens ; and in the distance towered
the great rampart of blue hills which supported the plateau where
the Ngoni dwelt. In front was the vast and lonely Lake, now
bright with sunshine or moonlight or dark and raging under the
stress of the south-east " mwala " when the tremendous breakers
beat upon the shore with a crash that could be heard miles inland.

Since the revolt of the Tonga against the Ngoni, the prestige of

the latter had considerably suffered ; their headmen who ruled on

the plains had been compelled to retire to the hills, and their war

parties did not always carry back the tokens of victory. It was

the case of a vassal people fighting desperately for life and freedom.

Yet the Tonga, soft and untrained, were no match for the virile

hill-folk in their disciplined strength, and it was but a question of

time ere they would be crushed again or swept out of existence.

Warfare was now going on perpetually ; the story of each month

was one of raids, attacks, and massacres ; the ordinary attitude

of the people was that of tension and dread, of unceasing vigilance

185

1 86 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and of instant readiness for flight. Their fears had been greatly
increased by the news that a rising of the Tumbuka tribe, on the
hills, who had emulated their example with less success, had been
followed by wholesale massacre.

Apart from the conflicts with the Ngoni the various sections
of the Tonga were incessantly quarrelling amongst themselves ;
beer fights, murders, mwave ordeals, mutual jealousies and ambi-
tions kept the country in a fever of unrest. " I have begun,"
wrote the Doctor, " to fight a wickedness and degradation of which
the people at home have no conception."

What was his attitude to be ? The confused period of pioneer-
ing was over, he saw more clearly the real principles underlying
missionary work, and he now looked at things more from the point
of view of the natives. Their thoughts and customs were different
from those of Europeans : laws considered equitable by the latter
pressed heavily upon them, whilst what was a trivial offence to a
white man they regarded as heinous. Chiefs also had their rights,
and were naturally jealous of their powers and the integrity of
their territory, and opposed those who interfered with their position
or set up a rival state. He decided to have nothing to do with
civil jurisdiction and to exercise authority only over his own people,
the pupils in the school, the industrial apprentices, and the crew of
the steamer : all others connected with the Station would be
subject either to the Chiefs or to a headman who would be recog-
nized by the latter, and no refugee would be received There
was, of course, the possibility that such a plan would not work,
that the natives themselves would not act upon it, and it would
assuredly not prevent disturbances. " There may be persecution
and suffering," he wrote. " This Christ tells us to expect, and
promises grace and strength to endure. But by giving our strength
to the inculcation of Christian principles we may, I think, look
confidently forward to young Nyasa taking up the work. . . .
Popular opinion arising from Christian education and enlighten-
ment no African Chiel, any more than any European sovereign,
can afford to ignore."

Calling the Chiefs together — Marenga, Chikoko, Chimbano, and
Kampela — he asked them in the presence of their people if they
wished the English to settle amongst them. They replied that
they did.

" Then we shall buy the land we require, paying in calico what
it is worth. We shall not interfere with your affairs. We have
come to teach, not to fight. You must settle your own quarrels

NEW CONDITIONS 187

as if we were not here. If anyone attacks you, you must defend
yourselves. Then we shall receive no one who runs away and comes
to live with us. And, lastly, we shall expect you to punish criminals
according to your own laws. Are these conditions accepted ? "

They were.

The Doctor set about to clear the bush, lay out the Station,
erect buildings, the bricks for which were manufactured out of an
ant-hill, and begin a garden.

One day a native came running into the place ; he proved to be
a slave who had escaped from a gang in the neighbourhood. " I
am very sorry, but you must go," said the Doctor, and the man,
a tragic figure, disappeared. To the workers around who were
surprised at this policy the Doctor explained that he had now no
power to make the Station a city of refuge. Another runaway
appeared saying he had been sold by his Chief and had broken
from the gori stick. Again, " I am sorry," the Doctor said, " but
we cannot assist you." " Let me stay the night," the man pleaded.
Even such a request the Doctor had to decline, and he had almost
to drive him away. Then one came crying, " Only redeem my
daughter and she and I will be your slaves for life." These things
moved the Doctor greatly, but his own freedom of action was now
in bonds.

On the first Sunday he hoisted a white flag on Makusi Hill to
inform the people that it was God's day. The rain swept down
in torrents, but Marenga and some of his followers attended a service,
one of the old conversational character at which picture-books
were shown. It was hard for the Doctor to begin his work all over
again, but it had to be done, and as it was his duty he did it. The
natives were much interested in a natural history work on account
of the picture of fishes which, as fisherfolk, they recognized, and on
subsequent occasions invariably asked for the " fish-book."

Frequent visits were paid to Cape Maclear to complete the
measures for evacuation. Mlolo said he would prefer to remain at
the Station ; he was a polygamist, but practically a Christian,
only loyalty to his wives preventing him putting one away and
making an open profession. " He has been my trusty counsellor
for many a day," said the Doctor, " and I have no hesitation in
placing him in charge of the property and general oversight of the
Mission." To Mlolo and the other leading men he pointed out that
the time had arrived when they themselves must administer justice.
He outlined the constitution of a native court which would have
jurisdiction over the district and would meet in the schoolroom

1 88 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

every Wednesday afternoon to judge cases ; the poison test must
be entirely discarded, and no mfiti (bewitcher) was to be recog-
nized, except, he remarked with a twinkle, moa (beer). All de-
cisions were to be made known to whoever was in charge of the
Station. Mlolo, Mpasa, and Kabanda — the last an old witch-
doctor— were nominated by the Doctor ; they in turn nominated
one each, and the additional three nominated another, thus making
a court of seven. Mlolo was elected President.

With scrupulous regard for native rights the Doctor took Mlolo
down to Mponda in order that he might ratify the arrangement.
The old slaver, whose regard for the Doctor had increased with the
years, at once agreed, and added that he would also gladly assist
in the settlement of any trouble.

" Now," said the Doctor, " we are entirely clear of any civil
jurisdiction, and that is an immense relief."

Returning on foot to Cape Maclear to rejoin Mrs. Laws he
crossed a terrible plain of evil-smelling mud, and at dusk, entering
a village, he made for what he thought was the Chief's hut. Several
coast traders barred his way and hurried him off to another, which
proved to be the one he was seeking. Mlolo, however, discovered
the reason for the haste : twenty slaves in yokes lay at the first
hut, part of a gang on their way to Mataka's and the coast. When
he reached the Cape he asked Mrs. Laws if anything had happened.
" Nothing," she replied, " except that a leopard came one night
and looked at me through the window."

Many indications showed that the slave-traffic was again in
full swing. The missionaries were constantly meeting caravans
and noticing dhows crossing the Lake packed with victims, many
of them boys and girls half-starved and ill. On nearing the coast
it was the custom of the slavers to become circumspect : they fed
and clothed their slaves and passed them off as hired servants.
" It is quite a mistake to suppose that the Mission has done much
to arrest the slave trade," the Doctor wrote to Dr. Stewart. " On
our first arrival the slavers were put to confusion, and a temporary
panic occurred amongst them, but as soon as this passed they
went on as before, though they were careful to give our settlement
a wide berth. For the future we may be spectators and inform-
ants regarding the slave trade and teachers regarding its evils, but
no more, since it is now established that we have no legal right to
receive slaves." But he kept Sir John Kirk at Zanzibar informed
of any movements of caravans that came to his notice. " The
information you send me," wrote Sir John, " is most valuable."

NEW CONDITIONS 189

On one occasion the Doctor had an encounter with an Arab
dealer. The latter, angry at being interfered with, raised his rifle
menacingly, with his finger on the trigger. The Doctor glanced
down the bore and then, opening his vest and baring his breast, he
fixed upon the man a calm, steady, unafraid gaze, and said, " Shoot."
The rifle was lowered. On being reminded long afterwards of the
incident, the Doctor laughed, and with characteristic modesty said,
" I must have been pretty sure that he would not fire ! "

It was at this time also that an incident, slight in itself, but
fraught with important consequences to Central Africa, occurred.
Amongst the go-naked tribe at the north end of the Lake a quarrel
was followed by one party asking the coast Arabs to assist them in
attacking the other. Armed help was readily given, and when
hostilities were over the Arabs found themselves rich in slaves and
in practical possession of a large area of country, where they settled
in a more permanent manner than they had hitherto cared to do.
The Doctor heard of this when he took up Stewart, along with two
assistants, to begin the road to Tanganyika. At the north end
Mr. Fred Moir appeared, cool and intrepid as usual, with sixty
dead elephants as the result of his hunting.

In October the transference of the head station was complete.
Albert, the schoolboys, and the workers were removed to Bandawe,
and a good, not overbright, but kindly lad was left at the Cape in
charge of the services and another of the school. The Doctor,
however, did not expect miracles, and it was not long ere de-
terioration set in, so that he arranged to shift the lads frequently
to Bandawe. One satisfactory result of the absence of European
restraint was to sift the heart -Christians from the lip-Christians
and to create a real, if small, community of disciples.

Vigorous work began at Bandawe\ although the staff was miser-
ably attenuated, consisting simply of the Doctor — the only medical
man on the Lake — Mrs. Laws, an agriculturist, and a carpenter,
the latter about to return to Scotland. The school was held in the
open air at the side of the new house. Only half an hour's notice
was given, but forty children appeared, and day by day large
numbers were added, being placed in the charge of Albert and other
Cape boys. No inducements were held out to the scholars, but
occasionally as a reward for good attendance a bit of cloth, a tea-
spoonful of salt — a great luxury to them — a fish-hook, or a needle
was presented. So ignorant were they that they imagined each
copy of the same book was different and had to be separately
learned. They were inclined to thieving, and had to be watched :

190 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

when some school-books were given out they tore off the covers and
used them as loincloths. One boy caught stealing from the store
was taken there by the Doctor, who showed him a mortar and
pestle, into which he slipped some chemicals from various bottles.
" Stir," he said. The boy obeyed, and the stuff began to crackle
and then exploded. " Now," he said to the affrighted youngster,
" take warning. You don't know what will happen if you enter
this store."

Mrs. Laws took charge of the girls and soon had a class of over a
hundred, which was held in the shade of a tree. All were of the
rawest type, dirty, dull, suspicious, haunted by fear. It was essential
first to teach them personal cleanliness : regularly their slates had
to be taken to the Lake and washed. A more difficult task was to
instruct them in the simplest domestic matters : this required a
toil, patience, and firmness which only Love made possible.

The Sunday services proved rather trying to the Doctor. Over a
thousand persons gathered in the clear space outside the store, but
there was a natural movement towards the shade of the trees, and
this produced close packing. The majority were unwashed, and the
smell of the red paint and rancid fish oil which covered their bodies
in a shade temperature of 920 F. was not pleasant to a fevered man.
He was sometimes sceptical of the motive which drew so large a
crowd. "They are converts to calico," was his private opinion,
" and that does not mean converts to Christianity." Services were
also held in the villages, as many as ten to fourteen being taken
by the Europeans and native lads.

Distant thunderstorms were a warning of the coming rains, and
the construction of the houses was hurried forward, as many as two
thousand bricks being made in one day. The Doctor assisted the
artisans in all the work and took his share in laying the bricks. " I
am keen," he wrote, " for getting the young teachers into a regular
course of instruction in manual labour of some kind, however
simple. I have therefore taken Albert, Dan, Meranga, and Jodi on
the work of bricklaying with me, telling them my reasons for doing
so, namely, that they might be strong in body and fitted to impart
manual instruction as well as mental to the scholars." He was
also busy in the garden, planting maize — this did not do well on
account of the light sandy nature of the soil — orange, lemon, guava,
mango, and coffee trees, which throve, and are to-day as prolific
as they were then, but English vegetables were a failure, the heat
being too great and the cool season too dry. The wheat was
devoured by grasshoppers, which proved a plague for years, though

A MIDNIGHT ALARM 191

the Doctor persevered, having noticed that native pests gradually
disappeared with the advance of civilization. He pleaded for
gardeners to be sent out, realizing that the economic position of
the Mission would in the future depend largely upon their efforts.

II. A Midnight Alarm

The Tonga Chiefs came to the Doctor reporting incessant raids
by the Ngoni. Five hundred refugees, camped on the broad beach
in masasas or grass booths, furnished ample evidence of the fact.
The children were suffering from cold and exposure. Would the
Sing'anga — the Doctor — not come to their assistance ?

" I am not your Chief," he replied. " Why don't you defend
yourselves ? It is time for you to unite and repel your enemies."

He took up some wisps of reed. " Look," he went on, " I can
bend this easily. It is like you Tonga just now. " But " — he lifted
a bundle of the same reed and endeavoured to break it — " you see I
cannot bend these. Be united and be brave. But if this is not
possible, try and get some of the Ngoni to come and visit me, and I
will see what I can do to bring about peace."

The number of refugees steadily increased : there was a camp
of over two thousand living in booths in the bush, and the Doctor
went out to those and held a service. " Why should your God
allow the Ngoni to trouble us ? " was their cry.

As the days passed, the excitement developed and spread : the
whole district was -seething with unrest, alarm, and dread : reports
came in hourly of the movements of the Ngoni. Terrible stories
were related of their cruelty to the children they had taken in tribute :
it was said that they tied obstreperous ones to branches and kindled
fires beneath them ; or placed them in large earthen pots and boiled
them with maize. Criminals were fastened to the ground and
smeared with honey, and the red ants came and ate them alive.

In desperation Chikoko came again to the Doctor. " What can
we do ? " he wailed. " You cannot hold a mirandu [conference] with
a wild beast ; you can only go to it with a gun. The Ngoni are like a
snake : we are like a frog. When the frog sees a snake he goes off
hop, hop, hop, to save himself ; that is how we do. If we had guns
and powder it would be different. We must have them. We want
you to give them to us."

" That," replied the Doctor, " I cannot do. We have brought
the gospel to the Ngoni as well as to you, and if we fought them
how could they receive us afterwards ? "

i92 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" But they will kill you and steal and destroy your goods."

" God can protect us."

Towards midnight a deserter from the Ngoni camp was brought
to the Doctor. He stated that the Ngoni were marching on
Bandawe with the object of wiping out the white men who were
protecting their Tonga enemies and of plundering the Station.

" Now," said the Tonga Chiefs exultantly, " the Sing'anga and
his followers will have to fight, and they will win ! "

The missionaries held a meeting and prayed for guidance and
protection. On the following day, the Doctor, though suffering
from fever, resolved to get into touch with the advancing impi.
He called Albert and Mvula — one of the slave servants who had
come up from the Makololo, now one of the carpenters, a steady
and faithful lad — and told them his purpose. " Will you come
with me?" he asked; adding, "I don't order you to come
— I am going unarmed, and so must you, and you are free to
decline."

" If your heart is to go," said Albert, " we will go with you. As
well die with you as here when the Ngoni come."

They started off, the Doctor ill and weak. At Chikoko's village
he was forced to lie down. There was not a soul in the place, but
down in the bay some fifty canoes were ready for flight. Struggling
onwards again he gathered what evidence he could regarding the
invaders. He suspected that they had been short of food and had
come to raid the gardens, and would return when their object was
gained. Unable to find them he returned.

At midnight he was awakened by a beating on the window. It
was the two artisans with a story from the boys, who stated
they had found some of the paths about the Station " closed," that
is, strewn with leaves — the African scout method of guiding attack-
ing forces — and therefore the Ngoni might be expected at daybreak.
The Doctor, who was in the sweating stage of fever, rose, packed
boxes with Station documents, clothing, calico, and other articles,
and sent them, along with school children from Cape Maclear, down
to the Herga at the beach. " The crew are to stand by the boat,"
he said. " When I give the order, Mrs. Laws will be escorted to the
shore, and before I leave I will set fire to the Station." Then all sat
down to watch and wait. Mrs. Laws and Sutherland, the agricul-
turist, as well as the Doctor, were suffering from fever.

" Why," asked the Doctor of the natives, " are we so anxious
not to fight the Ngoni ? What do you think is our reason ? "

It was Mvula who answered. " When Jesus was put to death

Huts of Refugees at the Manchewe Falls (p. 271)

The Jetty at Florence Bay, with Mount Waller behind

One of the Caves in which the Poka lived, with Waterfall
in Front (p. 272)

"Close on 7000 persons packed into the enclosure" (p. 294)

A MIDNIGHT ALARM 193

by bad men He had power to destroy them, but did not do it
because He loved them."

When dawn came further investigation was made, and it was
discovered that the leaves had been placed in the paths by some
of the boys at play.

This explanation, however, did not relieve the tension. It
was Sunday. During the service, which was held in the new house,
a large crowd was standing outside and looking through the doors
and windows. When the Doctor said, " Let us pray," the audience
bowed their heads, those at the door drew back, and a number of
the women ran away. The men inside heard the noise, looked up,
and seeing the fleeing figures, supposed that an impi was upon
them, and in a moment the place was a pandemonium, every one
scrambling out by doors and windows and uttering shouts of terror,
and leaving the missionary alone. He had learned not to be dis-
concerted by such incidents any more than by the dogs which
frequented the services and sometimes would fight and engage the
entire attention of the congregation, who would urge them on by
whistles and yells.

Shortly afterwards a raid occurred and several men were killed
and huts burned. The Chiefs again waited on the Doctor. " We
are now hearing God's Word and obeying it. War, you say, is bad.
We do not want to fight, but live in peace. If you do not help
us we shall all be killed and you will be living in a wilderness.
As for the Ngoni, they are too wicked to receive God's Word."

" You want us to go and fight the Ngoni ? " asked the Doctor.

" Yes, yes," eagerly, " that is the very thing."

" Well, we are not going to do it. We have orders from England,
and Christ has commanded His Word to be taken to all tribes."

" If the Ngoni come the Tonga will steal your guns — I mean
borrow your guns."

" We shall not lend our guns, and as to stealing them, are you
ready to take our bullets also ? We sleep with our arms and will
be ready for you."

He exhibited a brace of revolvers. " Will you catch the bullets
when these are fired at you ? "

" Oh no," said Chikoto hastily.

Baffled and spiteful, the Chiefs called off all their people from
the Station, warning them that the first one found working for the
English would have his house burned down, and ordered the school-
boys to leave school on pain of a beating. An attempt was also
made to steal the cattle. But this attitude did not last long ;
13

194 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

with sorrow on their faces the Chiefs came with peace-offerings
and renewed their friendship.

III. A Peace Mirandu

While these events were happening the Doctor was looking
anxiously for the Ilala, which was long overdue. When she
appeared, at Christmas, she brought a story of disaster. Steaming
at full speed down the Shire immediately after the pilot had called
out i£ fathoms, she had struck on a rock and settled down alongside
the bank. By diving, the cargo was got out and the rent in the
bottom plate stuffed with bark cloth. After being baled out she
was floated to a small creek, where sheets of tin were fastened on,
making her sufficiently seaworthy to proceed to Matope to be
docked and repaired. It was the first serious mishap sustained by
the gallant little steamer in her historic career, and was the last
worry which the Doctor had in connection with her, for she was
shortly afterwards transferred to the Trading Company under an
agreement which gave the Mission the use of her when she was
not otherwise engaged. In her log-cabin was found, in the Doctor's
handwriting, a number of " standing orders," giving detailed
instructions to the Captain. The Ilala was to be looked upon as
a movable mission station, and family worship was to be conducted
in English and Chinyanja. One paragraph read :

" The Captain and Engineer or other European aboard will
endeavour to do their utmost for imparting evangelistic instruc-
tion to the native portion of the crew, considering it their highest
honour to be the instrument in God's hand of leading those
working under them to the knowledge of Jesus Christ as their
Saviour. That this object may be attained let the language
and bearing of each European be marked by the courtesy of
Christian gentlemen both towards each other and towards the
natives."

To Captain Gowans, who passed with her to the Company, the
Doctor wrote : " I would still ask you to carry the instructions in
the log-book into effect, not as your master but as your pastor,
asking you as a Christian seaman to be as much ashamed of lowering
the Christian flag on board your ship as you would be to pull down
the Union Jack for any other flag in the world."

With the Ilala came Dr. and Mrs. Hannington, welcome
recruits to the staff, also the faithful Koyi back from furlough.
The latter brought with him a boy named Charles Domingo, whom

A PEACE MIRANDU 195

he had picked up, a helpless waif, in Quillmane, his father being
one of the cooks with the African Lak.s Company — they were
obliged to keep two, as one was usually drunk. This boy was
taken into the Doctor's house and trained by Mrs. Laws.

" Well, Koyi," said the Doctor, " I am thankful to see you again.
Now we shall reach the Ngoni."

The opportunity came a few days later, and the Doctor seized
it. A raiding party was reported at Mt. Kowirwi, and Koyi was
dispatched to find it. When he met the outposts one young man
insolently danced the war-dance in front of him.

" Be quiet," said Koyi; " my business is with Mombera — he is
not likely to let a boy like you interfere in it."

The party was in charge of a headman named Magoda, whom
he knew, and Magoda stared at William as at a spirit ; for a time
he doubted his identity. Then he expressed unbounded delight
and hastily dispatched a messenger to Mombera to stop a projected
expedition to Bandawe. " William Koyi is here, and is coming up
from the Doctor with a message. I have given him three guides."
Koyi learned that the Doctor's surmise had been correct, and that
the reason for the frequent raids on the plains was the absence
of food in Ngoniland.

The Doctor, having complete faith in William's caution and
discretion, dispatched him, along with Albert, to Mombera. Albert
returned with a letter, in which Koyi reported that the scarcity of
food-stuffs amounted to a famine. On account of the Doctor's
long delay in visiting the country and the false statements spread
by the Tonga, there was a strong division of feeling regarding the
English, half the tribe being disposed to be friendly, the other half
being decidedly hostile. When William himself returned he brought
Chipatula and his brother and some other sub-Chiefs and a message
from Mombera. The latter had thought the Doctor had deceived
him, but after hearing Koyi's explanation his old feelings were
renewed and he begged to see the Doctor again. Meanwhile he
had sent ambassadors to meet the Tonga and hear the Doctor's
word of conciliation and peace.

The visitors were entertained and shown the wonders of the
Station, and on Sunday they sat at service side by side with their
sworn enemies. A great mirandu was held, to which came all the
Chiefs of the district, accompanied by their followers. Long lines
of men, three deep, marched up to the Station : those armed with
guns first, next those with spears and shields, and then those with
bows and arrows. The Ngoni squatted on the verandah of the

196 LAWS OF LIV1NGSTONIA

Doctor's house on one side, fourteen Tonga chiefs squatted on
the other, with the Doctor, Dr. Hannington, and Mr. Stewart
between, while 500 warriors sat on the ground in front.

The Doctor said they had met on neutral ground, face to face,
to hear the message from Mombera ; the speaking was in their
hands, but let them speak as men and not as children. By making
each orator sit on a chair, and passing it from side to side, he con-
trived to avoid the confusion of an ordinary mirandu.

One wise Ngoni greybeard advised them not to go back to the
old days and old troubles — that was like digging up rotten food-
stuff ; they should rather forget these and find a sensible way out
of their present troubles.

The conference went on until the setting of the sun, when the
local men began to fidget and a few to steal away. No definite
decision was arrived at ; the Tonga declared they would like peace,
but would not again become slaves of the Ngoni, and a further
conference was proposed. Such result the Doctor knew would not
stand the test of an hour, and he thought it wise to send Koyi
as an escort to the envoys on their return journey.

The year 1881 closed in gloom. News arrived from the north
that while twenty-four of Stewart's men were on their way to the
landing-place they had been attacked, nineteen being killed, amongst
them some faithful Livingstonia lads, who had accompanied the
Doctor on his long journeys, and also one who had been his first
scholar at Cape Maclear. Stewart had remained for three days at
the spot to succour any in peril, and had also been attacked. This
incident led to the withdrawal of the expedition for a time, and the
restarting of the road from Karonga's.

Bandawe seemed an even worse situation for health than Cape
Maclear ; fever was endemic in the district, and the Station was
seldom free from illness. The heat was so intense that the native
workers had bleeding at the nose, and the sand burned the feet
even through thick boots. The Doctor was often incapacitated,
and the long-thought -of furlough now seemed nearer, though, apart
from health reasons and the desire to see his father, he would have
preferred to remain, the very thought of a congregation of pale
faces making him shiver. His plans, however, were upset by the
illness of Dr. Hannington, who had never been well since his arrival.
" I am afraid," he wrote, " that I will have to give up furlough and
remain at my post."

197
IV. Strange Days in Ngoniland

Anxious though the Doctor was to visit Mombera, in order to
bring about a truce between the Ngoni and Tonga, and to estab-
lish a mission that would perfect the peace, it was not until 18th
April 1882 that he was able to leave the Station. As Dr. Hanning-
ton's condition was far from satisfactory, he decided to take him
with him to the hills for a change. Koyi was also of the party.
They had not proceeded far ere Hannington became feverish, and
a machila was improvised to carrj him. The Doctor himself was
far from well, but held on. For several days they travelled over
rough country, ascending the while, until they reached the cold
heights that edged the plateau where the mist swept up and eddied
about them in clammy wreaths. On the seventh day, fevered and
exhausted, they arrived at Chipatula's, situated near a hill called
Mt. Nyuju, from which they saw, beyond the Kisutu River, the
cluster of huts and kraal which constituted Mombera's village.
After setting up the tents and resting, the Doctor ascended the hill
and obtained a view of the great tree-clad Ngoniland plateau,
broken, here and there, by curious abrupt hills shooting up like
thumbs out of the level.

It was intimated to Mombera that the Doctor had arrived, and
that he wished to be received by the tribe as a whole, and not merely
by a section, and would, therefore, like to meet all the sub-Chiefs.
Mombera, it was stated, was ill, but was summoning all the coun-
cillors of the tribe. For nine weary days the party waited. One of
the Doctor's occupations was a study of the Ngoni's migrations.
Koyi said the language was more akin to that spoken by the
Anaxosa round Lovedale than by the Zulus in Natal. Many words
had been adopted from the tribes through whose lands they had
wandered, but they had retained sufficient of the old tongue to
understand the Kafir Bible when it was read to them.

One night a hyena came prowling about, and the Doctor rose and
looked out. In the bright moonlight he saw the animal investigat-
ing the pots at the cooking-place. Telling Dr. Hannington not
to be alarmed, he took his rifle, and as the Iryena lifted a lid to see
what was inside he fired. In the morning the boys came saying,
" Blood, blood." The Doctor told them to follow up the trail, which
they did, and eventually speared the wounded beast and brought
it to the camp. Dr. Hannington wishing to have the skull, the
Doctor ordered the boys to hang the head on a tree in order that the
ants might clean it. That night came the " how-oof, how-oof " of

ip8 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

a hyena, then another, and another, until the whole countryside
seemed to be alive with the creatures. It turned out that the boys
had hung up the whole body instead of the head, and the hyenas
had been walking round and round the tree. " They were making
mourning lor their dead friend," was the native explanation.

When the summons came to the indaba (conference) both the
Doctors were ill, but they proceeded to the kraal where they were kept
for a time in the blazing sun-hine, and then told that as " too many
people were about " the council would be held in a hut. Passing
an armed guard at the low doorway they crept in, and found thirty
of the principal men gathered in the confined space. Mombera
was not present, but was represented by Mtwaro, a handsome,
intelligent man.

" You are here," said Mahalule, the Chief's foster-father. " We
will listen to you. Our fathers gave us these shields and spears and all
that we have, but if you can show us a better way we will take it."

The Doctor began by expressing sorrow at Mombera's illness,
and thanked them for their friendly reception. Showing them a
Bible, " Wre come," he said, " with this the Word of God. The book
is not a charm ; it alone can do no good. Maize in the field is
good ; cooked it is better ; but it is only when it is eaten that it gives
a man strength. So with the Book. Read and taken into the heart
it makes a man happy and strong ; obeyed by a nation it makes it
prosper. A nation may cast it aside and flourish for a time, but
it will at last sink and be destroyed. We wish to tell you what
is in the Book, to tell your children how to read it, to give medicine
to the sick, and to be the friends and helpers of all."

In turn the headmen expressed the friendliest sentiments, but
the gist of all the speeches was that the Tonga were their subjects
and must be subdued, and that the white men must leave the Lake
shore and come and live with the superior race in the hills. There
would be no difficulty in communicating with the Lake : a road
would be made with their spears. When the Doctor came, he
would find that the Ngoni also had their troubles. He would be
like a newly-married wife come to her husband's home who soon
found out how he was placed.

Mahalule also likened the Doctor to a husband who had married
two wives, and, having done so, he should settle the differences of
the two.

" True," replied the Doctor, " we have married the Tonga and
the Ngoni, but, like a good Ngoni husband, we will allow the wives
to patch up their own quarrels."

STRANGE DAYS IN NGONILAND 199

What with the heat and the stuffiness, the atmosphere of the
hut became unbearable, and by the time the sun set and the
council adjourned, the two missionaries were almost in a state of
collapse.

Next morning Mombera was present, looking ill. The same
ground was gone over and finally a pledge of protection was given
by an aged councillor. This was implemented by a present of
cattle, a sort of dowry accompanying the marriage between the
two parties, and the missionaries reciprocated by presenting to
Mombera some blankets, cloth, knives, beads, a mirror, and folding-
chair, and lesser gifts to the other men. The Doctor was then
formally notified that he was one of themselves and could come
and go as he wished in their country.

In their tent the missionaries were discussing arrangements
to leave on the following day when the Doctor saw his companion
looking strange and beginning to sway. Catching him, he placed
him on the camp bed ; his breathing ceased, his heart stopped,
and he was practically a dead man. Turning over the body the
Doctor gave it a pat, and another, and then felt the heart : it
began to beat, and by and by the patient came round. But what
with the fever, the weakened action of the heart, and other com-
plications, he gradually sank, and the Doctor had grave doubts of
his recovery. He kept special messengers flying to Bandawe with
news of his condition, and at last dispatched an urgent summons
to Mrs. Laws to bring up Mrs. Hannington. " I earnestly hope,"
he wrote, " that she may see him alive. I would hope for more
than this, but the prospect is dark. Though it may be the more
tiresome take the shortest road. Bring medicine."

The two ladies, with Albert as guide, started immediately
and pushed on swiftly over a very rough and dangerous track,
heedless of wild beasts — at one place they stumbled on a herd of
eleven elephants — bridgeless rivers, blazing sunshine, and severe
headaches. Once came a breathless messenger with the word,
" Come on as quickly as possible." Then later another, " Don't
march so rapidly — Dr. Hannington is better and gaining strength.
Send the medicines." These were given to the messenger, who
travelled all night and arrived at three next morning.

When they reached Nyuju Mrs. Laws was suffering from sun-
burn, her neck being so deeply affected that it never afterwards
regained its natural colour. A shed was erected for the Hanning-
tons and the Doctor and Mrs. Laws occupied the tent, a com-
munication cord going from the patient through the tent and being

200 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

fastened at night to the Doctor's arm so that he might be called if
needed. He and Mrs. Laws slept on mattresses on the grass, and
one night the latter heard a hyena sniffing close to her arm. On
another occasion a leopard jumped into the kraal amongst the
cattle, and at the same moment a tug at the string took the Doctor
to the side of his patient.

Dr. Hannington was too ill to undergo the risk of travelling,
and the weeks ran on. Mrs. Hannington, Mrs. Laws, and Koyi
were all occasionally prostrate with fever. The Doctor himself
was often down, yet he began the work of a regular station . Services
were held in the kraal to which Mombera came but was exceedingly
restless while the court jester cut curious capers and made grotesque-
facial contortions. A school under Koyi made remarkable progress,
the children proving intelligent, one of the cleverest being a daughter
of the Chief. With nothing but an axe, an auger, and a saw, and
despite turns of fever and dysentery, the Doctor constructed a
wattle-and-daub house into which Dr. Hannington was removed.
It was the first mission house in Ngoniland.

One day the little son of Mombera came over from the village
across the river to see the strangers. Mrs. Laws welcomed him,
and with a motherly gesture placed her hand on his head. He
became ill, suffered from a severe headache, and a native doctor
was called in to see him. The cure was blood-letting. To open
a vein was easy, but how to stop the flow the practitioner knew
not, and the child bled to death. The superstitious Ngoni believed
that he had been bewitched by Mrs. Laws, but Mombera, though
troubled in mind, would not listen to such a charge, and set his
face like flint against any reprisal.

Soon afterwards, however, he sent a startling message, curtly
ordering the school to be closed "as he did not wish the children
to be taught before he himself knew the News." It was the
command of a tyrant and had to be obeyed ; in the circumstances
it was also a calculated insult, but the Doctor, making allowances
for barbaric training, resolved not to quarrel. He sought an
interview, which was refused. Koyi was more successful, but the
Chief was obdurate.

" Then do you wish us to leave ? " Koyi asked.

" If you go," was the rude reply, " it is because you want to

go-

The evangelist returned looking disappointed and crestfallen.

" Something is going on behind the scenes," he said.

The Doctor did not know what to do. " God's ways are best,"

STRANGE DAYS IN NGONILAND 201

he wrote at last. " We do not give up hope and we shall try again.
Koyi wants to be left, as he will have more freedom of speech were
I not here, and what he says will not implicate me. In all those
delicate negotiations he has been my right hand. He is doing
true pioneer work of a very arduous kind and has his heart
thoroughly in it."

Leaving Koyi alone in the midst of a sullen population the
party in June made their way back by a longer but easier track
for the sake of the patient, and reached Bandawe in safety.
Sutherland was then sent up to Koyi with supplies.

Not long afterwards a headman of the Ngoni died. A meet-
ing of the council was called and the two events, the death of
Mombera's son and the death of this man, were debated. The
missionaries were accused of being the cause of both, and the matter
was put to the test, Koyi and Sutherland being held prisoners until
the result was known. Two fowls were procured : one was made
to represent the Ngoni and the other the missionaries, and mwave
in water was administered to each. Both vomited the poison and
lived, and Ngoni and missionaries were considered blameless. But
there was much discontent among the younger warriors, who
suspected that the coming of the white man's religion would under-
mine their savage practices, and they were all in favour of murder-
ing the missionaries and so securing complete freedom to wipe out
the Tonga. Mombera, however, remained immovable, and to
his steadfast opposition Dr. Laws and his companions owed their
lives.

What was the secret of this strange despot's attitude ? There
is no doubt that it was his affection for Dr. Laws. The two strong
men had drawn to each other, and the Doctor had taken a place
in the Chief's heart which no hostile influence could shake. His
change of position was really a strategic move in the interests of
the Doctor. He had to please two parties, one friendly to the
Mission and the other, the hot -bloods, opposed, and he tightened
and slackened the reins of licence in a way which, while it seemed
puzzling to the missionaries, was in reality their salvation, and in
the end led Ngoniland into peace.

Much to the Doctor's regret he had to invalid Dr. Hannington
home. " He has proved himself well fitted for the work," he wrote,
" and has endeared himself to all." The Doctor convoyed him as
far as Blantyre and returned in August.

202 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

V. Native Impressions

It was Sunday at Bandawe. In a village near the station there
was uproar and confusion : the passions of a community were let
loose, and anger and fear hurried the people on to a dark deed. A
man was accused of some crime : the casual statement was made
that he must be a wizard, and instantly the place was in an uproar.
He was seized, and mwave was forced upon him. He drank it and
died. The fury of the people knew no bounds. They seized their
clubs and hoes and whatever instruments they could lay hands
upon, rushed upon the corpse, and beat it and hacked it to pieces.
It was then dragged outside the village and lighted wood piled
about it, for such evil-doers must be consumed by fire.

At the same moment a Christian service was going on at the
Station and the second convert of the Mission was being baptized.
This was Mvula, already mentioned, who, although unable to read,
was an earnest and devoted disciple of Christ and one of the Doctor's
trustiest men. Remembering the wish of the Rotterdam lady who
had helped him into the University the Doctor suggested to Mvula
that he might take the new name of James Brown, which he did,
though he continued to be known also by bis native title. Albert
came up from Cape Maclear to be present, and after the ceremony he
went up to Mvula and said happily, " Now I no longer stand alone."

On another Sunday later, in a downpour of rain, a crowded service
was held at which three more lads were baptized. Each gave an
account of his past life and of his conversion and invited others to
acept the Christian way of living. Sitting looking on, intent and
wondering, were some Ngoni messengers from the hills. Albert
was again present, with face aglow. But there was none in the large
gathering so quietly glad as the tall grave man who administered
the vows to the converts.

At Mwanda's village two men were accused of an offence and both
accepted the poison ordeal. One died, the other vomited and
recovered, and in revenge for his humiliation organized an attack on
Mwanda. From the Station the missionaries saw the village in
flames and heard gunshots. One man was killed. Retaliation
followed and the affair went on for days. At the mirandu the
Doctor spoke strongly of the wickedness of the business and of
the folly of the ordeal. Taking two glasses of water he added a
substance to each.

" That is mwave," said the Chief.

" No," rejoined the Doctor ; " it is iron."

NATIVE IMPRESSIONS 203

Into one glass he dropped strychnine and into the other tartar-
emetic.

" Now the water in these two glasses seems alike, but if you drank
one you would die ; if you drank the other you would live. In the
same way your mwave ordeal can be manipulated by those in charge
of the matter. Is it not so ? "

" True," they admitted, and actually mentioned the name of the
drug which was used to cause a person to vomit.

" We do not like the ordeal ourselves," the Chiefs confessed
frankly, " but the people believe in it and demand it and we cannot
refuse to give it."

The Doctor recognized the difficulty : in Africa, as elsewhere,
legislation could not move in advance of public opinion ; but he
thought the Chiefs might quietly use their influence, and after a time,
when the schools had done their work and enlightenment spread,
could combine to put down the practice. How strong a hold the
superstition had was shown by the fact that Fuka, one of the most
sensible of the Chiefs, being accused of sorcery, demanded to be
tried by the ordeal, and was with difficulty persuaded from carry-
ing out his intention, though he insisted on a dog and fowl under-
going the test.

Walking along a native path the Doctor met a funeral. First
came a woman carrying a basket of flour, a handful of which she
threw on the ground at the cross-paths. Other women followed,
then four men carrying the body wrapped in a mat and swung on
two poles. Behind were the mourners, heads, faces, and hands
painted red and white, carrying baskets and pots on which a cross
was represented, indicating that the body was that of a woman.
This was a simple burial. Two days after this a Chief died not
far distant, and forty of his slaves were killed and buried along
with him.

The boys looking on at these things are now men, some of them
occupying positions of honour and usefulness in the Mission.
"Dotolozi " (Dr. Laws), says one, a school inspector, "came when
there was great trouble. The land was forest ; elephants, lions,
leopards, and hyenas roamed about. We were afraid of being sold :
every headman sold people to get cloth and ammunition. The Ngoni
had control of the district and we had to pay a tax of food. The
Tonga young men they took away to train were brave and were
always the chief fighters in the raids made on the tribes in the west.
They rebelled and came back to the Lake and built stockades on the
shore : we used to hide ourselves among the big caves on the other

2C4 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

side of Makusi Hill. When Dotolozi came it was different. We
thought he was a fish and had no bones, but we saw him lift a box —
so big — and we changed our minds. He was a charmer : he
charmed the whole district, so that the Ngoni could not come near.
There was a story amongst us that at night he walked about the
villages without being seen. Some Chiefs came from Chintechi
to ask the Doctor to make rain, and their enemies wanted to waylay
and kill them, and followed them all the way back ; but the Doctor
went with them and was always between them and the line of fire.
We did not know what praying meant, and when the Doctor said,
' I,et us pray,' no one would shut his eyes, for our big men told us not
to do so ; and so we looked through our fingers, in case anything
should happen. We still pray for the Doctor everywhere on
Sundays. If he had been a young man like some to-day who make
much of difficulties and have little courage there would have been
no gospel in Tongaland."

" The Doctor," says another, a pastor, " was a tall man, with
black hair, and we called him the ' Sing'anga wamkura,' the great
doctor, for he was a great figure to us. There might be trouble, but
when he came everything was at an end ; even among the Chiefs if
they were fighting when he came all was over. I remember once
when there was a dispute between two Chiefs, Dr. Laws heard of it.
When he appeared they had started to fight, but he went between
them and said ' Stop ! ' and they stopped. The conditions were
exactly the same as those described in Mary Slessor of Calabar.
Now in the land at large his name is a household word and we have
a song about him. My own children now and again say to me,
' Father, sing us Dr. Laws.' "

VI. Massacre

" The Doctor is my friend ; yea, more, he is my right eye, and
before I send an army to fight the Tonga I will send him word."

So ran a message from Mombera. Next day a body of Ngoni
ambushed a party of peasants in their gardens and left over thirty
bodies stabbed to the heart. Late that evening continuous gun-
firing was heard. In the moonlight the Ngoni had stolen down,
passed the Mission garden, not purloining anything, but killing four
of the workers, and attacked the village of Fuka, three of whose
wives were amongst the slain.

Towards sunset on the following day Tonga scouts detected the
enemy and raised the cry that they were approaching Marenga's,

MASSACRE 205

and in a moment the population was in flight, some making for the
woods, others streaming to the beach and Makusi Hill. An armed
watch was set at the Station.

The strain was so intolerable that the Chiefs once again appealed
to the Doctor to interfere. " There is no other way of secur-
ing peace," he told them, " except by sending up messengers to
Mombera."

Another mirandu was therefore held, but all the proposals in-
volved securing the Doctor's countenance and aid, and he refused
to be drawn into any arrangement. " Don't lay hold of my legs,"
he told them. " Act for yourselves and leave me neutral — that is
the best way of which I can be of use to you as mediator."

After long debate the Chiefs decided not to send up messengers ;
they would rather unite, build one large village, and resist their
oppressors.

" Then you invite war," was the Doctor's comment.

" Will you," said Chikoko, " stand by and see our blood shed
by the Ngoni when we have not harmed them, and not help us to
resist ? "

" Even in that case I cannot help by armed intervention, though
I will assist the wounded on both sides."

The Chiefs were as good as their word. They ordered their
people to abandon their villages and concentrate in large centres,
and very soon within a distance of 10 miles to the south of the
Station over 20,000 were huddled together, while at another point
farther north over 10,000 were gathered. Some Chiefs nearer
the hills were so tired of what seemed an endless and hopeless
struggle that they gave in their allegiance to the Ngoni. Such
faint -heartedness incensed the others, who expressed their resent-
ment by attacking them, and the situation grew more and more
complicated.

The Doctor was profoundly sorry for these harassed people.
Ever since the Ngoni had invaded Central Africa, the Tonga and
other tribes had been the victims of systematic robbery and assault.
He thought it probable that much that was weak in their character
could be explained by their misfortunes.

Skirmishes followed at frequent intervals, though not always
with victory to the hillmen : at Kota Kota they were thoroughly
beaten, and a brother of Mombera was slain.

Sutherland having returned, Koyi was holding the position at
Mombera's. He was often ill and tired and lonely in the midst of
scenes that would have depressed anyone ; beer drinks and obscene

206 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

revelries were frequent, the village would be flooded with armed men,
war dances went on, secret councils were held. " I need sometimes,"
he said, " to pull my hat well down on my head to prevent the hair
rising and lifting it off." But he was determined not to forsake
his post in case the Ngoni would visit their displeasure on the
Mission. What upheld him was the constant counsel and encour-
agement of the Doctor, who never lost sight of the conviction that
the only true foundation for the work was the goodwill of the people.
" Faith and patience, William," he wrote, " these are the two things
which will turn the country upside down. You are doing noble
work, and God is blessing it and honouring you as His instrument.
The angels in heaven might envy you your task."

When William sent down his first letters they were accidentally
burned on the way. On the second occasion the messenger tied
them to the cleaning rod of his gun and, at a sudden alarm of game,
shot them into fragments. Koyi grimly placed his next dispatches
inside a large brick which he marked " fireproof " and said, " There,
carry that to the Doctor ; it will teach you a lesson to have more
care."

He once sent down some Ngoni for provisions. On being given
a box to carry, one said haughtily, "I am a soldier and do not
carry boxes." The Doctor looked at him with the flashing eyes
which earned for him the name " Eyes of War," took the box,
and placed it on the man's shoulder and pointed to the path. The
proud warrior marched off, but at the first village commandeered
a Tonga, and at the point of the spear made him convey the load
to Ngoniland.

The Doctor did not believe that the raids in the neighbourhood
of the Station were the work of Mombera ; they were probably
isolated efforts on the part of the less responsible sections of the
tribe, and he never lost his faith that all would yet be well. So
sure was he that permission would yet be granted to carry on work
that he sent up Sutherland again with a plan for a brick house,
and instructions to proceed as quicldy as possible. Sutherland was
another of the quiet heroes of humble life whose qualities of courage
and endurance are never known until they are placed in circum-
stances of responsibility and strain. Mr. J. A. Smith, a teacher
now attached to the Mission, also paid a visit to the hills. But it
was Koyi who gained the confidence of Mombera and the people.
So great was his influence that at his services in the kraal over 1500
persons would be present, and the Doctor had to warn him that
they might be there by the Chief's order, and he did not wish

LOOKING FORWARD ONE HUNDRED YEARS 207

hypocrites but Christians. " You will get the children next,"
the Doctor confidently told him — " all in good time. Let us not
hurry on too fast, but have patience and prayer in unstinted
measure."

VII. Looking Forward One Hundred Years

With clear vision and superb faith the Doctor was looking
far into the future and planning out, wide and deep, the foundations
on which the structure of Livingstonia was to be built. The Home
Committee must have been astonished to receive from him at this
time a scheme as complete as it was comprehensive, which required
them to form a mental picture of the conditions and needs of the
country for at least fifty years ahead. If what he outlined seemed
too big to be wrought out in that period, he boldly asked them to
think of a hundred years.

The aim in his mind was to train up in Central Africa a Bible-
reading and a Bible-loving people, intelligent and sensible in their
outlook, and skilled with their hands. To realize this he con-
templated a mission comprising a line of central stations 30 miles
apart on the Lake shore, another line parallel to these 30 to 40
miles inland, and so on. The idea of parallel stations came to him
from the black parallel ruler lying on his desk ; he took it, opened it,
placed it on his large map, and said, " That is how we shall ad-
vance." On each station would be one primary school, and there
would be eight similar out-schools under the supervision of the
missionary. Even this would provide only half the number that
would eventually be required. Every alternate station would have
a secondary school, which would be partly technical. Then there
would be a great central institution or college, and perhaps in time,
two, to cover the higher educational and industrial needs of the
people. Out of the primary schools four classes or grades would
come : those fitted by inclination, character, and habit to be (1)
teachers, (2) evangelists and pastors, (3) commercial and in-
dustrial workers, and (4) agriculturists. The medium of educa-
tion would depend on the British or Portuguese occupation of the
country : if British, it would be the vernacular in the primary
schools (except perhaps in the case of arithmetic) ; in the secondary
schools vernacular and English, and in the college English, but not
to the exclusion of other languages.

The financial aspect of the scheme was worked out to the
minutest detail ; the estimated cost for all the buildings — churches,

208 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

colleges, schools, and houses — would amount to £117,000, and the
annual upkeep and salaries to £22,450.

With all his enthusiasm and idealism the Doctor was essentially
practical. He knew that he could not outrun natural develop-
ment. The people were ignorant of their own ignorance, and one
had to begin at something earlier even than the primary school and
try and give them a desire for knowledge and instruction. That
was the stage at which they were now working. But gradually
his scheme would come into operation, and meantime he did
not believe in sending boys to Lovedale to be trained, as the
Home Committee wished. " I think it better," he said, " that we
should aim not so much at sending them to Lovedale as developing
Lovedale here."

His object in sending forward such a scheme was partly to show
the Committee that they had enough on hand without claiming
the east side of the Lake. In the quiet and dispassionate way in
which he treated all problems he pointed out the difficulties of
working that field with its Mohammedan population. They were
not ready to occupy it ; to do so would involve huge additional
expense, and the llala was not now available for unfettered move-
ment. Apart from these obstacles they could not ignore the
rights of the Universities Mission. The latter had proposed
extending their coast work to the Lake even before the Livings.onia
Mission had been established. They had first organized a station
at Masasi not far from the coast -line, and had gradually worked
their way inland to Mataka's and were now prospecting on the Lake
shore. They were bound to begin there ; it was essential for them
to have a receiving-place for goods brought by watenvay. No
possible objection could be taken to such a step. The Lake was
a natural boundary between the two spheres if it could be agreed
upon. He had no patience with those who were jealous of another
mission " cutting out " the Livingstonia enterprise. " The more
I study the circumstances of the Mission," he wrote, " the more
strongly do I think we ought to confine ourselves to the west coast,
the north and south ends, and the back country inland. Here we
will find a practically unlimited scope for our energies for many
years to come. There are thousands of miles to the west still
un visited and unoccupied, and we should not claim a district which
we are not able to occupy ; this would be keeping from the natives
what Christ wished them to possess."

He had the opportunity of discussing the matter with his friend
Johnson, who turned up at Bandawe' in September 1882 so ill that

NG DRAGGED UP FROM THE LAKE, IQOO

Another Organ being taken up, 1905

A View on the Longmimr Road

A BITTER CRY 209

he had to be carried up from the beach in a hammock. The more
the Doctor saw of this simple-minded tireless missionary the more
he liked him. " He is the true apostle of the Lake," he often said.
Johnson walked about the illimitable regions of savage Africa
with the fearlessness of a child and the scant equipment of a native.
Laws frankly stated to him that he was still under orders to
occupy the eastern side, but that he did not think the Livingstonia
Mission could honourably do so. As if some foreboding crossed
his mind he added with his usual sturdy independence of spirit,
"lam willing to co-operate with Christians of any other denomina-
tion— but I call no man master." How clearly he read the future
was shown in a letter at this time to the Rev. Horace Waller :
" If your Committee could give an assurance that you would keep
to the eastern boundary it would simplify matters. Even such
an arrangement would have to be considered temporary, as in the
course of years native Christians would be moving about and would
naturally take the form of worship and Church Government to
which they have been accustomed." What moved him always in
the matter was not petty sectarian feeling but the desire to save
the native from the bewilderment which artificial ecclesiastical
differences caused him.

VIII. A Bitter Cry

One of the Doctor's aims was to develop the spirit of self-help
in the people. A -minor event in the early part of 1883 was the
sale of the first Tonga primers to schoolboys at the price of a fowl
each. It was a small beginning, but soon afterwards the congrega-
tion agreed to support Charles Konde, the evangelist, at Cape
Maclear, at the rate of three shillings per month for three days each
week, the other three being allowed him for garden work. This
was the first evangelist supported by the native church of Central
Africa. Contributions for the purpose came in beads, grain, eggs,
and fowls, as well as in coin, and the allocation was done by the
natives. School fees were first taken from teachers, who gave
sixpence per month from their wages in order to learn English ; but
ordinary school fees were much longei in coming.

It required more patience to develop concerted action on the part
of the general community. Time and again the Doctor urged upon
the Chiefs the need for better public roads. " But who will pay
us for the labour ? " they always asked. " No one," replied the
Doctor. " Let each man bring in a tree, each woman a bundle of
H

210 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

grass and some clay, each boy a ball of bark for binding. Then
let every one give three days' work : the Mission staff will do the
same, and the thing will be done."

The Chiefs agreed, except one who was drunk. To him the
Doctor said, " It is for your benefit, not mine. See " — he kicked
his foot against a stone — " my boots protect my toes : it is you
and your children that need a good path." The demonstration
appealed to the Chief, who joined in, and the work began.

The Doctor then asked them to build schools in their villages.
Two large ones were soon up under the superintendence of Albert ;
they cost the Mission nothing, and the people, taught to regard
them as their own, took a pride in maintaining them.

For a time the school work was interrupted by three of the
girls being seized by the uncle of one while they were on their way
home and sold as slaves to Jumbe. The latter took one as a wife
and resold another, and the third died.

The rainy season again proved a trying one. Sickness, fever,
and languor mastered the staff. " It is heavy work," said the
Doctor, " fighting against the ever-returning sickness, and proves a
heavy drag on the progress we would like to see our work making."

Even the elements seemed to conspire against them. Bandawe
justified its native name of " the home of the thunder " . electric
storms, terrifying in their intensity, played about the Station ;
cold, dismal days and nights of wind and rain made everything
mouldy and every one wretched ; severe earthquakes shook the
buildings. Of more moment was the danger from wild animals.
Man-eating crocodiles took a heavy toll of human victims, and
leopards and hyenas prowled nightly about the Station and killed
off the fowls.

The cruelty of nature and man kept the Doctor busy. Many
frightful cases of laceration were brought in. One man who had
been seized by a crocodile had deep wounds stuffed with charcoal
and burned leaves, and another had his filled with sand, this being
the native form of treatment. Spear and gunshot wounds were
numerous. One day a man was carried into the house. The
Doctor was lying ill, but he rose and found that the leg had been
smashed and a chunk of flesh blown away. There was nothing
for it but to amputate at the hip-joint.

" No. no," said the patient. " I don't want my leg taken
away."

" Then you will die," replied the Doctor. " You are half dead
already."

A BITTER CRY 211

But neither he nor his friends would consent to the operation,
and the Doctor could only bandage the wounds and give an opiate.
As the man lay bleeding to death he cried repeatedly, " I am going,
white man ! . . . Where am I going, white man ? "

" Ay, whither away ! " echoed the Doctor sadly, and for days
could not get the words out of his mind. If only that bitter cry
could ring through Scotland !

In another case where a bullet had broken a thigh bone and
amputation was also imperative, the patient said, " But how shall
I walk ? How shall I hoe my garden with one leg ? "

" Better," suggested the Doctor, " hoe your garden with one
leg than go to your grave with two."

This man recovered and moved about on crutches.

Some of these cases would not have been undertaken in Europe
without trained assistants and consultations with specialists, but
the Doctor had to rely upon his own knowledge and skill and the
help of whoever happened to be at the Station at the time. One
operation of a kind which he had never seen performed was done
by lamplight. The patient seemed likely to succumb, but the
Doctor prayed earnestly that he might recover. " I am anxious
he should do so not only for his own sake but also for the sake of
the Mission." Removed to the quiet seclusion of the Doctor's
study, he did recover, and, said the Doctor, " We thank God for
his recovery and trust that the success of the operation may be
the means of enlarging His Kingdom."

During 1882 there were 3104 native cases, 2304 of which were
attended to at the Station. As patients kept coming all day long,
the Doctor put up a Red Cross flag to indicate when he was in
attendance. This medical work was not without its hazards.
During an epidemic of ophthalmia he was infected and for a time
was incapacitated from work and suffered severely.

At this time he started a magazine. He had long been desirous
of having one which would be a means of conveying intelligence
concerning the Mission and become the repository of information
regarding the country and its people ; but there was yet no printing-
press, and such a journal could only be in manuscript form and have
a local constituency. Nevertheless, he made the attempt. He
called it first the Livingstonia Magazine, but this was altered to
Aurora. In an editorial foreword he outlined the wide scope of
its interest and gave suggestions for papers which proved that he
had not a little of the journalistic faculty. " What we want,"
he said, " are actual facts recorded as speedily as possible. These

212 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

are of greater importance than the manner in which the matter is
written. A plain record of facts in the ordinary language of every-
day life is what is most desirable." A paper on co-operation in
the second issue — which proved the last — is interesting as con-
taining the germs of all his subsequent mission policy.

At night he bent patiently over his translation of the New
Testament. " If any work on earth should make a man humble,"
he said, " I feel it to be trying to translate the Scriptures." But
at last the draft was finished, and in May he wrote to Miss Melville,
his old Sunday-school teacher, giving her the news. And as he
always did, on every task being completed, he added, " To God
alone be the honour and the glory."

IX. Henry Drummond

Close upon midnight on 19th September 1883 the Doctor was
asleep. A sudden call woke him. He heard the word " steamer,"
and rose and dressed and went down to the Bay, where he found
the ship's dinghy and a note stating that Dr. and Mrs. Scott and
the Rev. James Bain, new recruits for the Mission, along with Prof.
Henry Drummond, were on board. Drummond ? The Doctor
was taken by surprise : no word of his coming had reached him.
Hastily scribbling a line to Mrs. Laws to prepare for guests he went
on board and welcomed the strangers. As all walked up the long
path to the Station the dim light idealized the surroundings, and
Drummond remarked on the beauty of the spot. At the manse
a fire had been kindled and food was ready. The party were
accommodated comfortably for the night, but the Doctor and
Mrs. Laws slept on the top of the storeroom table, and the latter
was up by three o'clock baking bread for the party.

Drummond, it appeared, had been sent out at the instance of
Mr. James Stevenson in the interests of the Trading Company,
to make a scientific investigation of the Nyasa and Tanganyika
regions, a gigantic task which, fully carried out, would have taken
him many years. The particular section he wished to study was
that between the two lakes where Mr. Stewart was actively con-
structing the Stevenson Road. It was now fairly well known and
had been frequently traversed. Mr. Fred Moir and an engineer
had shortly before conveyed the L.M.S. steamer Good News in
400 sections over the track to Tanganyika. It was on this journey
that Mr. Moir met a slave caravan, 3000 strong, with a dancing,
singing escort, and accompanied by the leader, a courteous white-

HENRY DRUMMOND 213

robed Arab with gold-embroidered joho and silver sword and
daggers. The slaves were in gangs of a dozen, fastened with chains
or the gori stick, all bending beneath loads of ivory or grain, and
the women with babies in addition. Hyenas followed the huge
rabble like sharks a ship, looking for cast-off victims.

Drummond had called in at Cape Maclear and seen the first
settlement. His description of the spot in Tropical Africa,
evidently jotted down at the time and left unaltered, gave to the
outside world a totally wrong impression of the situation and did
the Mission considerable harm. It set the keynote for subsequent
travellers, who wrote in the same commiserating strain and conveyed
to their readers the same sense of depression and failure.

Having " bumped " on the way up at a wooding station, the
Ilala went on to Nkata for repairs. When she returned two days
later her ensign was at half-mast. A gale was blowing and the
waves were thundering on the beach, but the Doctor was anxious
to know who was dead and ordered out the boat. The first attempt
to launch her failed. A second attempt was made. Taking off
his boots and handing his jacket to Drummond he scrambled in.
" Now ! " he cried out to the men. The boat was shoved off but
could not keep her bows to the waves, which forced her broadside
on to the beach. The Doctor leaped into the water and was hauled
to land.

Seeing the difficulty the Captain raised up a square piece of
tarpaulin and through a telescope those on shore made out the
word " Stewart." -Later they learnt that some men from the north
end had brought the news. Stewart had died after three days'
illness, while superintending the construction of the road at its
most difficult and unhealthy section. To Laws the loss of his
tried and efficient colleague was a severe blow, and he grieved with
the deep and silent sorrow of a strong man. There was none of all
those he had worked with whom he missed more. They would sit
for hours together without speaking, and Mrs. Laws was often
concerned and would say, " Have you two quarrelled ? " It was
the silence of perfect friendship.

" Ever since I met Stewart on the Quilimane River," he wrote,
" I found him to be the same staunch and loyal friend. Calm and
self-possessed in the hour of danger he was the man one could
trust in an emergency, and his steady hand had more than once
been my best help at the operating-table. I learnt how cool his
nerves were when we were being charged by buffaloes and elephants.
Quiet and undemonstrative in character he disliked anything of

214 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the nature of boasting. All he did, being the outcome of a living
faith in Christ, made him that true and constant friend which our
work together in storm and sunshine, trial and triumph, sorrow and
joy, proved him to be."

The Doctor maintained then and afterwards that the remarkable
services which Stewart had rendered were inadequately realized
in Scotland. The road he had been constructing was finished to
the top of the plateau, and a good native path leading thence to
Lake Tanganyika his work may be said to have been done.1

Drummond's midnight impression of the beauty of Bandawe
did not survive the revelation of the day, but he was greatly im-
pressed with the work going on. On Sunday morning he gave an
address at the native service, the Doctor interpreting. " A grand
sight," Drummond said, " five or six hundred present, all squatting
on the ground and listening with all their might . " In the afternoon
Communion was observed, nine Europeans and three natives sitting
down at the Table. Drummond conducted the English service
in the manse, giving " The Greatest Thing in the World," and in
the evening introduced the missionaries to two new hymns, " Peace,
perfect peace, " and " O Saviour, bless us ere we go."

He was struck by the extraordinarily difficult task of the mission-
aries. " Supposing," he said, " one day a small boat of strange
build and propelled by means unknown to civilization came up the
river Thames containing half a dozen Esquimaux ; supposing these
men pitched their tents in Battersea Park and gave out that they
had come to regenerate London Society ; supposing they took
England generally in hand and tried to reform its abuses, and above
all tried to convert every subject of the country to the god of the
Esquimaux — that is very much the problem which our missionaries
have to face in Africa."

He described in his book how it was being successfully solved :
"The bright.spot on Lake Nyasa is Bandawe, the present headquarters
of the Scottish Livingstonia Mission. It is only a lodge or two in a
vast wilderness, and the swarthy worshippers flock to the seatless
chapel on M'lunga's day dressed mostly in bows and arrows. The
said chapel, nevertheless, is as great an achievement in its way as
Cologne Cathedral, and its worshippers are quite as much interested,
and some of them at least to quite as much purpose. In reality no
words can be a fit witness here to the impression made by Dr. Laws,
Mrs. Laws, and their few helpers, upon this singular and apparently

1 Stewart's sister was the accomplished wife of Dr. Vartan, of the Edin-
burgh Medical Missionary Society, Nazareth.

PANIC 215

intractable material. A visit to Bandawe is a great moral lesson ;
and I cherish no more sacred memory of my life than that of a
Communion service in the little Bandawe chapel, when the sacra-
mental cup was handed to me by the bare black arm of a native
communicant." This communicant was Charu, who had been twice
sold for a sack of native potatoes, a courteous little man. One day
on approaching the manse door the Doctor's dog barked at him, and
Charu at once fell to his knees, clapped his hands, and said, " Mo'ning,
Mzungu." Another communicant whom, along with other trust-
worthy lads, the Doctor gave to Drummond to assist him in his
expedition was Mvula — James Brown. Of him Drummond says :

" I remember the first night of my journey, after a long day's march, lying
in the tent after I had thought the men had all gone to bed. Outside the tent
I heard a strange noise coming from one of the camp fires, and I peered out.
The forest was flooded with moonlight, and I saw Mvula kneeling on the
ground, and around him was a little group of Bandawe men who understood
his language, and he was having evening prayers as Dr. Laws had taught him.
I listened and tried to catch the accents of his petitions. Little as I knew
of the language I could at least make out this petition at the close of the
prayer, for what was to him the whole known earth. He prayed for Bandawe,
he prayed for ' Blantyra,' he prayed for Tanganyika, and for ' Englandi.'
That proves to me that the Mission is a genuine thing. This man was not
what you call a pious convert ; he was a commonplace black. I trusted him
with everything I had, and I tested him in many critical ways, and on many
adventurous occasions, but Mvula's character never broke down."

Mr. Bain accompanied Drummond to the north end and settled
at the new station established by Mr. Stewart at Mweniwanda,
4000 feet above sea-level and about 50 miles from the Lake.

X. Panic

The arrival of Dr. Scott made it practicable for the Doctor to
take his long-postponed furlough ; he felt he could no longer defer
it, much as he loved the work. " Now that the infant Church of
Nyasa is born I can meet my father. Thanks be to God, I can tell
him now of His goodness. The Kingdom of Christ moves forward,
oftentimes making milestones of its ambassadors, but ever forward
to victory ! "

Reports from Ngoniland, however, convinced him that it would
be wise to see Mombera before he left, and taking Dr. Scott with
him he set out on 24th October. On the evening of the following day
a native came into camp saying that an impi had set out for the
Lake. Some of Marenga's men with the Doctor instantly left for

216 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

the shore with the news. Next day, while crossing a high ridge
swept by a keen, cold wind, the advance scouts were sighted. The
Doctor ordered his carriers to close in and deposit their loads.
Sitting on these the party awaited the Ngoni, who came on in single
file. A grim savage band they were, each armed with a stabbing
spear, two throwing spears, a killing or dispatching club, and a stout
skin shield. Younger lads carried provisions. As they passed they
shouted their war-cries, whistled, and danced. " Why do you come
up now when we are going to pay you a visit ? " they cried. " When
you return you will find no wives to cook your porridge."

The Doctor watched them in silence, counting them one by one :
there were 140 in all. Then he went quietly on his way.

When he arrived at Mombera's he sent Koyi to the Chief with the
message : " Why have you dispatched a war party to the Lake when
we are here and the ladies are alone ? Send a messenger to order
them not to touch the Station."

" It is not my expedition ; they have got out of hand and gone
without my leave," was the reply, "but I cannot well interfere. In
order, however, that you may get away at once I will receive you
to-morrow."

The meeting was friendly, Mombera evincing great pleasure at
seeing the Doctor again. This was the one hopeful element in the
situation. But the Chief was in the hands of his councillors, aged
men hardened in lifelong habits, and without them he confessed he
could do nothing. The usual indaba followed. It required all the
Doctor's immense patience to traverse the same old ground, but on
this occasion he laid the emphasis more on the teaching of the chil-
dren and pled earnestly for permission to open schools. It was the
crucial question. The councillors put the matter thus : " Suppose
we allow the children to receive your instruction, will they be able
to accept it and yet continue cattle-lifting forays when they grow
up ? If, also, they learn more than their fathers, will they not despise
our ignorance, be disobedient, and refuse to join us in our raids ? "
Very simply and clearly the Doctor tried to lead them to a higher
and nobler conception of tribal life and activity.

In the end no decision was arrived at, but he felt that the wedge
had penetrated a little further into their dense, dark minds, and he
left with the conviction that it was only a matter of time ere Ngoni-
land would become one of the greatest triumphs for the Gospel.

Hastening to Bandawe he found the Station upset by alarmist
rumours. The impi was still in hiding on the hills and the Tonga
had deserted their villages in the expectation of an attack. Next

PANIC 217

morning early, Fuka's village was rushed, an old sick woman who
had been left, killed, and the huts and the new schoolhouse set on
fire. As soon as the smoke and flames were seen, panic-stricken
women and children by the hundred came tumbling pell-mell over
the fences into the Station.

" Mkondo ! " they cried. " War ! War ! War ! "

" If the Ngoni come here," said the Doctor, " the butchery will
be horrible."

He rounded up the fugitives. " Run ! " he cried.

" Where shall we run to, white man ? "

" To Makusi Hill," was his response. Shepherding them there,
they disappeared amongst the matted jungle.

Ngoni approached the Station, where the Doctor was standing,
but passed on. Later a body of Chintechi men, 400 strong, appeared
and demanded that the Doctor should fight by their side to repel the
invaders.

" You must fight the Ngoni or us," one young blood shouted.

The Doctor ignored him and talked with the headman, and
ultimately the whole body moved off. By this time the Ngoni
were retreating towards the hills.

Sutherland was now sent up to be with Koyi permanently,
the Doctor hoping that the leaven of their quiet influence would
prepare the way for better things. The last message was that the
restlessness of the warriors was increasing, and a great war-raid
to the rich region of the north was being mooted. " The cattle
at the north end are feeding on bananas," was the song in the
villages.

On 1st December the Ilala came from Karonga, bringing amongst
other passengers Prof. Drummond and Mr. W. Griffith from Tan-
ganyika, the first of the L.M.S. missionaries to use this route.
Drummond had not reached his objective, Lake Tanganyika — had
never been nearer it than 140 miles. Though he had encountered
no more than the ordinary difficulties that beset the African traveller,
he decided to return ere the rains caught him, and came back with
Mr. Fred Moir and another elephant hunter. It was while he was
with Mr. Bain and Mr. Munro, the engineer, near Karonga, that he
received the mail which told him of the phenomenal success of
Natural Law in the Spiritual World. Here, also, as he wrote to
Laws, he saw James Stewart's grave : " He lies under a great
baobab tree which he himself chose to mark the resting-place of
Captain Gowans. The two graves lie side by side, thin forest all
around."

218 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

His journey had been of the slightest, one that would have been
counted a picnic by the missionaries, but it was sufficient to give
him some idea of the stern pioneering work which they had to do.
Although the whole of his travelling in Africa was over well-
traversed tracks, he made the most of his experiences, and his book,
despite some inaccuracies, remains one of the most charming works
of travel in the language. The chapter on white ants originated in
a discussion with the Doctor.

He spent another Sunday at Bandawe and witnessed the baptism
of four adults, including Albert's wife. " Before the white men
came," said one of the lads, " we did not know about God, but now
we know and wish to obey Him. It is not because we want to be
the children of the white man or to get cloth and beads, but that
we may serve Him."

Laws, like other men, fell under the spell of Drummond's
fascinating personality ; his two brief visits were the brightest
incidents in the social history of the Mission. " I wish," the Doctor
wrote, " that we could have a Drummond every month ! " And to
Dr. Smith he sent an appeal to have the Professor put on the Home
Committee, an arrangement which was subsequently effected.
On his part Drummond wrote to Laws: " I shall never forget my
visit and all the kindness you and Mrs. Laws lavished upon a
stranger."

A sorrowful group of Chiefs gathered on the morning of the 4th
to bid the Sing'anga, their friend and counsellor, good-bye. In the
afternoon the Doctor, with Mrs. Laws, boarded the Ilala. He was
so utterly worn out that he lay down on the deck, feeling as if he
would never rise again.

The staff he left to carry on consisted merely of Dr. Scott, Mr.
Smith, the teacher, and Mr. M'Callum, the carpenter, at Bandawe,
Mr. Sutherland and Koyi at Mombera's, and Mr. Bain at Mweni-
wanda — fewer than the original party in the country in 1875.

The journey to Blantyre was made with Drummond, who,
being ill, remained there to recover. Going down the river the
Doctor was in a depressed mood : he shrank from the home-going ;
he felt that he was unknown, that he had no influence to increase the
interest in the Mission, and that he was not in favour in the Free
Church on account of his decision to remain a United Presbyterian.
Taking up his Bible he read the fourth chapter of Esther and was
struck by the fourteenth verse :

" // thou altogether holiest thy peace at this time, then shall there
enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place ;

HOME TRAVEL 219

but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed : and who knoweth
whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this ? "

The words kept ringing in his ears as he travelled : he took
the northern route, visiting Cairo, Alexandria, Naples, Rome, and
Florence. In London he went to hear Spurgeon, who read the same
chapter, and the Doctor waited expectantly for the text — it was
the fourteenth verse. The sermon seemed specially intended for
him: " You are a cipher, you say ? Ah, but put a figure in front of a
cipher ! Put God before you ! " Thus mightily fortified he faced
his coming tasks. It may be said here that before sailing again he
saw Spurgeon and told him of the incident. A number of mis-
sionaries whom the latter had sent out to the Congo had died, and
when he heard that Laws was going to Central Africa, " Humph,
he said, " some folks take a short-cut to heaven ! "

XL Home Travel

The Doctor's first duty was to report himself to the Livingstonia
Committee. Mr. Stevenson had resigned the Convenership, and
been succeeded by Mr. James White of Overtoun, who died shortly
after the Doctor's arrival. It was a coincidence that the new
Convener, Mr. White's son — Mr. J. Campbell White — should be
appointed at the May meeting, when his first duty on taking the
chair was to welcome the Doctor home to Scotland. It was the
beginning of long and happy relations. About the same time, the
Rev. J. Fairley Daly, B.D., became a member of the Committee,
and with him also the Doctor formed a friendship which was to
enter largely into his life.

The Doctor said he had no statement to make, but would
answer any questions. His chief point was that the policy of the
Mission at the moment should be to win the Ngoni : until those
professional raiders were civilized, mission operations amongst the
more peaceable tribes would be subject to constant interruption.
Let them concentrate on Ngoniland. He urged that Dr. Walter
A. Elmslie, who had been appointed for Livingstonia, should be
sent at once to Mombera's, although he did not know the language,
that Dr. Cross should go to Chikusi's in fulfilment of the promise
of 1876, and that branch stations should be opened in the " regions
beyond," where there were people by the thousands. Two men,
a medical and an ordained missionary, should be placed in each
station, as well as teachers and artisans and lady workers. " In-
crease, not retrenchment, is heaven's law of finance. . . . Put

220 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

down your money, we are willing to put down our lives." In
accordance with his recommendation, Dr. Elmslie was allocated to
Ngoniland and left at once.

The Doctor had brought with him his complete translation of
the New Testament in thirteen little MS. volumes, and Chinyanja
and Chitonga dictionaries. To prepare the former for the press he
went to Banchory and, Mrs. Laws assisting him, worked steadily
for eight hours each day until the task was finished. The printing
was undertaken by the National Bible Society of Scotland, always
a good friend to Livingstonia.

It was a time of industrial depression, but a movement was
begun to raise £20,000 for Livingstonia for the next five years, and
the Doctor threw himself spiritedly into the task. All summer and
winter he was practically living in trains, travelling to meetings
from one end of the kingdom to the other, London, Liverpool,
Manchester, Southport, and Birkenhead being included in his
itinerary. He disliked sensational announcements, and the beat-
ing of drums, and big gatherings ; his preference was for quiet
prayer-meetings ; " It is chiefly those who attend such," he said,
" who hold up our hands while we go down into the valley to
fight." Above all, he enjoyed speaking to children ; for their
benefit he always carried a number of African curios : they were
contained in a long box painted black, and it was popularly known
as " Laws' Coffin." No matter how stormy the weather was he
never failed to turn up at meetings ; as one remarked, " It was easy
to see that he was accustomed to travelling in wild countries."
" It is toil for dear Africa," he wrote in 1886, " but sometimes I am
very tired, and fever, though slight, is never a week absent from
me." He occasionally indulged in a long rest in bed of a morning,
" in a way I am thankful was not the case in bygone days, else I
had never spoken at the meeting last night as Laws of Livingstonia.
But I thank God for giving me the honour of pleading so often for
His children in Central Africa."

He was sometimes painfully conscious of ineffective advocacy
of the cause. " I always preach far better in my bed at 1 a.m. ! "
Often when he felt most deeply his tongue was tied. But when
speaking to business men he was always at ease, for the mere dry
figures he adduced were impressive. He would tell them of the
new markets that were opening up, and say, " Our Mission has
already disposed of 500,000 yards of cotton, 25 tons of beads,
7 tons of soap, and other articles too numerous to mention."

In addition to his ordinary addresses he read a paper, giving an

HOME TRAVEL 221

account of the Bantu tribes around Lake Nyasa, before the geo-
graphical section of the British Association in Aberdeen. While
in London he gratified an old desire, and went and saw Dr. Living-
stone's grave in Westminster Abbey. As he stood beside it his
heart filled. " Would to God," he said, " that I could carry out
his work, and help to win Africa for Christ."

He was also busy securing workers, and sifting and selecting
the candidates and coaching them regarding Livingstonia. To one
teacher he wrote : " Let me recommend for your study on the way
out the lives of Joshua and Paul, as you will find on reaching your
work that in your surroundings you have much in common with
both." There was no lack of courage in the men who volunteered,
for shock after shock came from the field. Mr. William M'Ewan,
C.E., — who had volunteered to take up Mr. James Stewart's work
on the Stevenson Road, — and Mr. George Rollo, a teacher, both just
out, died. Dr. Scott was invalided home ; Sutherland succumbed
at Mombera's.

In the autumn Mr. Stanley delivered an address at Glasgow
in connection with his proposal for a Congo Free State. The
Doctor was introduced to him and asked how the scheme would
affect the unclaimed territories, and what regulations would be
enforced regarding the importation of liquor and fire-arms. Stanley
was reticent. An international conference was to be held in Berlin
on the subject under the presidency of Prince Bismarck and
attended by plenipotentiaries from all the European States. The
Convener of the Livingstonia Committee thought that missionaries
would have no standing or influence, but Laws telegraphed to the
Rev. Horace Waller to meet Mr. Fred Moir and himself in London.
There was a consultation and a deputation to the Foreign Office,
where they learnt that there was nothing in the proposals to exclude
liquor and fire-arms. It was then resolved that Laws, Moir, and
Mr. Ewing, secretary of the African Lakes Company, as it was now
called, should proceed to Berlin, on behalf of the Livingstonia
Committee. Here they had interviews with Stanley and officials
of the British Foreign Office, but were told that the matter was
already settled. Nevertheless, through their exertions it was
brought up again and a veto placed on the sale of fire-arms and
liquor to the natives in Zambezia. On the return journey the
party had an interview at Brussels with King Leopold, who was
keen to obtain Scottish engineers for his steamers on the Congo.

Another visit the Doctor made was to Ireland as a delegate to
the Pan-Presbyterian Alliance at Belfast. He crossed with the

222 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Rev. Hope Waddell, as bright and keen in his old age as he had
been as a pioneer in Calabar.

Before leaving Scotland again the Doctor brought an important
matter to the notice of the Livingstonia Committee. He had long
been in an autocratic position in regard to the government of the
Mission, but with the increase and development of the stations he
felt that the sole authority should not now rest with him, and that
the other missionaries should take their share of responsibility in
the management of affairs. He therefore proposed the formation
of a Mission Council. The Committee agreed, and left the matter
in his hands as missionary in principal charge.

The Doctor and Mrs. Laws sailed from Dartmouth on June
1886. Accompanying them were two young ladies, Miss Grant
and Miss Gibson, who, undeterred by the terrors of Africa, were
going out to be married, the former to Dr. Elmslie, the latter to
Dr. Cross. Two passengers whom the Doctor found agreeable
were Vicomte de la Panouse, a Roman Catholic, and Mr. T. Stuart.
The Vicomte had had an adventurous career and had been through
the siege of Paris ; he and Stuart were proceeding to the Nyasa
region to hunt elephants.

At South African ports the Doctor bought several horses and
some sheep : the latter he wished to give to Mombera with a view
to introducing a wool-bearing breed into the Ngoni country.

XII. A Birth on the River

On landing at Quilimane he was grieved to learn of the death
of William Koyi, which occurred shortly after his patient service
had been crowned by victory. The progress at Bandawe had
convinced the Ngoni of the benefits of education, and at a council
of headmen it was decided to allow schools and unrestricted
teaching. A deputation was sent to William that he might convey
the decision in due form to Dr. Elmslie. William was ill in bed.
At first he could not realize the purport of the message : the news
was too good to be true. Assured that his prayer had been granted,
he broke forth in the words of Simeon : " Lord, now lettest Thou
Thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation."
" Dear William," wrote the Doctor, " he was my right hand in
many a serious and delicate piece of work. All honour to him and
Sutherland. Their consistent, upright Christian character has laid
the unseen foundations that have made life and work possible in

A BIRTH ON THE RIVER 223

Ngoniland. At last what we have been working, longing, and
praying for has come."

On the up-river journey he found the natives in a different
mood from that to which he had been accustomed. Some time
before Chipatula had been shot and killed by a white man, who
was promptly speared to death, while the Lady Nyasa was looted
and sunk. The incident had unsettled the whole of the river
country, and the native feeling was still raw and sore. The party
journeyed in the Lady Nyasa, which had been raised ; it broke
down, causing a vexatious delay, and the Doctor had to take
charge.

On the evening of 10th August they were passing through the
Elephant Marsh. Under an awning forward Mrs. Laws was
lying on a stretcher on the deck, the Doctor beside her, a candle
or two casting a dim light around. At midnight the steamer
slowed down and stopped. Presently it was announced that Mrs.
Laws had given birth to a daughter. Miss Gibson was down with
fever, but Miss Grant was pressed into service, and became nurse
and assistant to the Doctor. Early next morning the steamer
continued its journey to Katunga's. Owing to the shortage of
carriers the Doctor dispatched the young ladies ahead to Blantyre.
Staying there at the time was Mrs. Shearer, wife of the African
Lakes Company's agent at Quilimane. On hearing of the event she
jumped into a machila, and, with a load of comforts, travelled with
all haste to the river, where she took charge, of the child. Next
night, which was cold and windy, on the journey up, the little one
became very ill, and Mrs. Shearer and the Doctor watched until
dawn, when the journey was resumed. A warm welcome waited
them at Mandala from Mr. and Mrs. Fred Moir. The child was
christened Amelia Nyasa Laws.

The Doctor was glad to find that the British Government had
at last realized the nature of the situation in Central Africa, and
had sent out Captain Foote, R.N., accredited (like Dr. Livingstone)
to the native chiefs. As legal requirements obliged the brides to
reside a month within the consular limits, Dr. Elmslie and Dr.
Cross were able to come down to Blantyre. The marriages were
celebrated first in the consulate and then in the church. Leaving
Mrs. Laws to recuperate, the Doctor continued the journey. The
Llala was found to be transformed ; she had a house built upon
her with wire-gauze windows and folding-up seats along the sides,
which made her more comfortable than in the old days. At Cape
Maclear work was steadily progressing under Albert, though he

224 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

was meeting with much opposition from an old heathen headman.
The welcome from the staff at Bandawe" touched the Doctor
greatly ; but it was significant of the rapid changes in the staff
that only one of the men whom he had left when going on furlough
remained.

Opportunity was taken of the presence of the other missionaries
to constitute a Mission Council, of which the Doctor was made
Corresponding Secretary. This closed a definite stage in his
career. Although he was still to exercise a general supervision
over the Mission the responsibility of decisions as to policy, alloca-
tion of staff, and extension of work was now vested in the Council.
From this time also the Doctor's direct and personal interest
ceased to be co-extensive with the work : the history of the Mis ion
branches off with the development of other stations under European
leaders. Livingstonia became, in fact, not one but many missions,
each planted amongst a different tribe who spoke a different
language and presented problems different from the others.

As soon as the Council terminated the Doctor proceeded to
Chikusi's in Southern Ngoniland to redeem the promise made to
the Chief in 1878. He had long been anxious to establish a station
there, for the Ngoni were constantly raiding the plains in the neigh-
bourhood of Cape Maclear and even the highlands in the vicinity
of Blantyre. He took with him Mr. Gossip (the teacher), Albert,
Mlolo, and Jamts Brown, and twenty carriers. The journey proved
one of the worst he had ever undertaken. A large part of it was
over a black, evil-smelling marsh. Suffering from dysentery he
at last had to give in. Ordering his bed to be placed under a tree
he lay down, and was soon in a burning fever. Albert and Mlolo
nursed him with affectionate solicitude, the former sitting with his
head on his knee and fanning him unweariedly. After being
helpless for four days he struggled on again and reached the valley
of the Livkzi River, a pleasant countryside. Chikusi was drunk
and unfit to be seen, but after much anxious negotiation the coun-
cillors on his behalf gave the Doctor a site, and permission to
preach, open a school, and do medical work. The people were so
superstitious that many had " medicine " placed on their faces
before they ventured to look on the white man, and he foresaw a
long and stiff hold-on ere results were achieved. On the return
journey he was racked by pain and weak from dysentery, and
crossed the marsh in the moonlight. Shortly after he left a mwave
trial was held, and fifty persons died, while many others were
dangerously ill.

A BIRTH ON THE RIVER 225

At Cape Maclear he met the Ilala with Mrs. Laws and the baby.
Mr. Johnson was also on board. The latter had been invalided
home, but had so far recovered on the voyage that, characteristi-
cally, he returned from the Cape. " He is still far from strong,"
wrote the Doctor, " but dominated by the same zealous missionary
spirit."

The Doctor settled down to his usual hard work. From sun-
rise to sunset the whole staff were busy brickmaking and building
new cottages, which had to be thatched before the oncoming of the
rains. Every now and then he was called away to settle some
serious dispute or to attend to some medical case. One day
Chikoko sent word that two women, his sister and another, had
undergone the mwave ordeal, that the latter had vomited but Ins
sister had not, and asking his assistance to neutralize the poison.
This was a most unusual course for a Chief to adopt, for it ran
counter to the established custom of the country, but the Doctor
was not surprised ; the Chief had more than once in his judicial
capacity refused to permit the test, his reason being that the
missionaries said it was against the law of God. The Doctor
managed to save the woman, who, however, was not very well
pleased with his interference !

Chimbano was a Chief of a different type : a violent and pas-
sionate man, of whom the others stood a little in awe, he at this
time brought a false charge against a scholar and pursued it with a
passionate vindictiveness which extended to the Mission and the
staff. All the work of the school was upset and the attendance
dwindled to nothing. The Chief would allow no food to be brought
to the Station, and armed guards had to be set at night in order to
prevent any hostile movement. An ingenious plan was devised
by the other Chiefs to relieve the immediate needs of the Station.
They came separately with an offer to mediate, and naturally each
brought a fowl as a gift.

When a mirandu on the matter was held the Doctor hinted
that it might be necessary for the missionaries to leave Bandawe in
consequence of Chimbano 's attitude. " If you do that," replied
the friendly Chiefs, " the Ngoni will be down upon us in a month."
Chimbano continued to bluster and scowl, and sought to win over
the others, but they sat with the impassive faces which only Africans,
long schooled in the art, can assume. Sore at being thwarted in
his revenge, but bowing to the inevitable, Chimbano gave in, and
the suspected scholar was taken from the place where he was
hidden and quietly shipped away. The Doctor, who had barely
*5

226 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

been able to sit through the negotiations, went to bed with a sharp
attack of fever.

In November he recruited twenty-five Tonga men and sent them
down to Mandala, for periods of from three to twelve months, to
act as porters on the cataracts section of the river journey, and in
the following month dispatched other twenty-six for a year. This
arrangement was made with the consent of the Chiefs, and he
became security for their return. These were the first labourers
who left the Nyasa district for work at a distance. Such move
ments began to make the Doctor's currency circulate more freely.
He had overestimated the capacity of Central Africa to absorb his
£25. There was one bag of pounds in coppers which he had never
touched ; it was only taken out to be checked. The people pre-
ferred to be paid in calico, since they did not see the use of obtain-
ing coins which had immediately to be exchanged for cloth.

XIII. A Harvest of Death

" Life in many of these districts is almost impossible. Is it
right to go on in missionary work in regions where there is plainly a
barrier of God against men living there at all ? Many a night I lay
in Africa looking at the stars and asking myself whether it was right
or wrong ? That question has haunted me every day since. Until
we have evangelized the safer portions of the globe are we quite sure
that we are right in sending the lives of noble men to fight with that
fever which no man has yet got to the bottom of and which no man
who has been in the country has ever escaped ? "

This cry from Henry Drummond found no echo in the heart of
the quiet, resolute man at Bandawe, though there was one period in
the rainy season of 1886-87 when he was sad and sore with the
struggle.

Amy, the baby, " a pale-faced, bright wee body," was at the
gates of death. The Doctor thought he was going to lose her : he
had done everything he could, and she was sinking. He prayed
that she might be spared, and she began at once to mend. Mrs.
Laws also suffered severely with fever. Word came that both Dr.
Elmslie and Mrs. Elmslie were down. Dr. Cross at Mweniwanda
was seriously ill, and there came a day when a brief, pencilled note
arrived with the news that Mrs. Cross had died. She had proved a
pleasant companion on the way out, and was so clever at picking up
the language that she was able to direct the house-boys at Bandaw6
on her arrival there. Mr. Mackintosh, the carpenter, who had also

A HARVEST OF DEATH 227

come out with the Doctor and whom he had sent up to Mweniwanda
as the safest place during the rains, died a fortnight later.

Dr. and Mrs. Laws were both suffering from fever when the new
Universities Mission steamer, Charles J anson, secured by the energy of
Mr. Johnson, appeared with the Rev. G. H. Swinny, sent from Likomo
for medical care. He was dangerously ill and in the extremity of
weakness. " We are glad to have him," wrote the Doctor to Arch-
deacon Maples, " and will do our best, although we have no spare
strength just now." Mrs. Swinny, however, was with her husband
and proved an efficient nurse.

Then came other cases. The two hunters, Vicomte de la Panouse
and Mr. Stuart, had settled at Bandawe, bought a piece of ground at
Tipura, about three miles from the Station, built a wattle-and-daub
house, and engaged in shooting elephants. Stuart — who wa;» an
athlete and utterly fearless, chasing game and spearing them as
they ran — one day shot eight ; and as the first-fruits of their sport the
Doctor shipped for them on the Jlala 3400 lb. of ivory. Stuart told
the Doctor that he had one day come across fifty lions ; they were
very numerous in the wilderness of foot-hills.

Getting soaked several days in succession they returned with
fever. A summons came for the Doctor, who walked up to Tipura,
after the blasts of rain ceased, met the Vicomte tottering to the
door, and was in time to catch him before he fainted. Stuart,
with a temperature of io6°*3, was on his back reading a Prayer
Book. Next day — Thursday — the latter was taken in a hammock to
the Station, the Vicomte accompanying him on a donkey. Stuart
was housed in the cottage and his friend in the Doctor's study.

On Thursday Mr. Currie, the teacher, collapsed ; he was followed
by the Doctor and then by Mr. MTntyre, the other teacher. The
Vicomte grew worse. At night the Doctor rose, despite a tempera-
ture of over ioo°, and attended to the patients.

Next day MTntyre was delirious, and Gossip, another teacher,
the only well person on the Station, was detailed to watch him. At
2 a.m. on Saturday Stuart, in whose case there were complications,
succumbed. The Doctor went to the workshop and was making
his coffin when word came that Swinny was worse ; he returned
and attended to him and then finished the coffin. Stuart was
buried that night in the cemetery between the Station and the
Lake.

Swinny began to improve, but was so desperately weak that the
strength he possessed was not sufficient to sustain life. It was clear
that he, also, was going.

228 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" You are nearing home," said the Doctor gently.

" Yes, Doctor, I know. It is the land I have long desired. Will
it be convenient for you to bury me to-morrow ? "

He died on Sunday afternoon. Next morning the Doctor rose
early and made a coffin for him also, and he was buried by candle-
light. The native who dug the grave in the sand was almost buried
alive by the sides falling in ; and, curiously, that night Dr. Elmslie,
in Ngoniland, dreamt that a man had been nearly lost in such a
manner at Bandaw6.

These events shook the Doctor to the soul. " It is hard," he
said, " to be baffled and to lose a life entrusted to you." He took
Mrs. Swinny in the Ilala to Likomo. " A noble woman," he called
her ; by her unwearied devotion and self-restraint in these terrible
days she had won his self-respect. Bishop Smythies came across
later and consecrated the grave ; and for all that the Doctor had
done he was officially thanked.

Mr. MTntyre he dispatched to Ngoniland, and the Vicomte he
ordered home. The latter was very grateful for all the kindness he
had received, and gifted his house, garden, crops, and medicines at
Tipura to the Mission. " This property," wrote the Doctor at the
time, " the future may make more valuable than we are apt to
suppose." Thirty-five years later it was the site chosen for the new
mission house at Bandawe.

. . . Right or wrong ? The Doctor never asked himself the
question. To his mind it had long since been answered. The policy
had been laid down nineteen centuries before : the campaign was
going on and he was in the thick of the battle. It was not for him,
a soldier, to pause and reflect or criticize. His duty was to fight on,
no matter what the casualties were by his side, until the victory was
gained. No coward he, nor any of his colleagues. They knew and
accepted the risks and perils of the service and faced them sanely
with a courage that was heroism of the highest type. Why they did
it the Doctor could have told in a sentence :

" The love of Christ constraineth us."

XIV. Crisis

The situation in Ngoniland was still far from satisfactory.
Since his arrival Dr. Elmslie had been engaged in a difficult task and
had at first made little progress. It could not be otherwise with a
people whose principal occupation was raiding their neighbours.

CRISIS 229

" I have seen," says Dr. Elmslie, "an army, ten thousand strong,
issue forth in June and not return till September, laden with spoil in
slaves, cattle, and ivory, and nearly every man painted with white
clay, denoting that he had killed some one." As a result of these
raids he had counted representatives of over a dozen tribes in the
district round Nyuju. No school had been allowed to be carried on,
but three boys, sons of a witch-doctor, came secretly by night to be
taught. Eventually the breaking of a drought after a prayer-
meeting, when the methods of the native rain-makers had failed,
so impressed the principal men that teaching and preaching were
sanctioned. It was after this that Dr. Elmslie paid his visit to
Blantyre. On his return with Mrs. Elmslie, he received so warm and
respectful a welcome that he was surprised. " Yesterday," said the
Chief in explanation, " you were unmarried and a boy : to-day you
are a man."

Work was now openly and regularly proceeded with, but within
a few months the outlook darkened again. The section of the Tonga
settled at Chintechi in a strongly entrenched position continued
to raid the outlying Ngoni villages on the hills. Mtwaro's people
suffered most, and exasperated by such treatment from marauders
whom they regarded as their slaves they pressed Mombera to allow
them to swoop down in force and annihilate the shore settlement.
Mombera feared that if the attack was carried out the younger men
would get out of hand and proceed to Bandawe" and destroy the
Mission station, and feeling tied by his promise to Dr. Laws he
refused. Mtwaro,.whose influence was almost as great as the Chief's,
was furious, and threatened to act without his consent.

At this point came MTntyre's visit to the hills. The seventeen
Tonga whom he took with him travelled back unarmed, trusting
to the fact that they were the white man's servants and carried
his mail. They were ambushed by a party of young Ngoni warriors,
and six were stabbed to death and two wounded. It appeared that
these Ngoni had not been allowed to dance in the Chief's kraal
because their spears had not been blooded, and they had seized
the first favourable opportunity to qualify for future events.
Reprisals ensued and communication with Dr. Elmslie was cut
for a time, as no Tonga would consent to run the same risk. " I
fear," wrote Dr. Laws, " this is not the last instance of the sacrifice
of native lives in the furtherance of our work. Such events are
incidental to their share of the work as to ours, and as in the past
so still by doggedly holding on and patient waiting this strain will
be tided over. A wiser head and more loving heart than ours is

230 LAWS OF LIV1NGST0NIA

at the helm of the universe, and He will steer us through these
breakers of disappointment and delay."

Once more he felt constrained to go to Ngoniland. July found
him marching up with a Leicester ewe and a Cape ram and sheep,
the first woolly stock in the country, which he gifted to Mombera.
The Chief was in his Jekyll and Hyde mood — friendly to the Doctor
in private, hostile before the headmen and people. When the
Doctor spoke of the need of protection for his messengers, Mombera
turned to him sharply, " How can you expect us to sit still and
be killed ? What of the raids which the Chintechi dogs are making
on Mtwaro's villages ? "

The headmen loudly declared that the Doctor had promised
them wealth and power if they received the Word of God : they
had done so and laid down their spears, and they were poorer than
ever. The Doctor had never made any such promise, but said
that if they adopted the ways of the Book and cultivated the arts
of peace, trade and commerce would follow.

After a week's fruitless negotiation the Doctor returned to
Bandawe, and matters grew threatening on the hills. Mombera
confessed to Dr. Elmslie that the discontent was rifest amongst
distant portions of the tribes, and that his hands were being forced
by his brothers and others. There was nothing for it, the Chief
said, but that Dr. Laws should visit them again and settle the
questions that were disturbing the peace of the tribe. Dr. Elmslie
accordingly wrote and urged the Doctor to come. Mrs. Elmslie
was then in a delicate condition, and Dr. Laws, knowing she was
unable to undertake the toilsome journey to the Lake, decided
that Mrs. Laws, with Amy, should go up to be with her. Twice
when all was ready the carriers failed to appear. An hour after
the second occasion a dispatch came from Dr. Elmslie stating that
the war spirit was rising, dancing was going on, and two impis
were encamped and ready to march on what was presumably an
expedition to the Lake. The Tonga were to be wiped out, and as
the missionaries would be a restraint on the operations, they must
cither come and live on the hills or clear out of the country.
Mombera, however, was using his influence for peace, and had
summoned his council for the new moon, and wished the Doctor to
attend. Dr. Elmslie appealed to him to come at once and bring
as many carriers as possible in case they were ordered to quit.

As the Doctor was anxiously considering the matter the Ilala
was sighted. It brought the Rev. Dr. Henry for the Mission, and
Mr. Alfred Sharpe, who had been trained for law and had been

PRISONERS 231

lately an official in Fiji, and had come to hunt elephants. The
Doctor warned the latter of the unsettled condition of the country,
but he elected to stay and find what sport he could in the neigh-
bourhood.

Eliminating all personal considerations, the Doctor came to
the conclusion that it would not be wise to obey the call at the
moment. There might be an adverse decision of the council, com-
pulsory withdrawal, and probable attacks by the way, and, in
addition, a flight from Bandawe ; and the life of Mrs. Elmslie
could not be risked in such hasty movements. He urged Elmslie
to temporize. " Your safety and success lie in delay and holding
quietly on if at all possible." Elmslie managed to secure a post-
ponement of the council until the full moon in October, when it
was hoped Mrs. Elmslie might be better able to travel.

Dr. Laws never left anything to chance. " There is no use
thinking of precautions or making them when it is too late," he
said. He asked his colleague to send down his microscope and
cases of surgical instruments, one at a time, wrapped to look like
books, and to bury his medicines in stoppered bottles. This was
done. In secreting the medicines Elmslie had to use the utmost
precaution. Sending his house-boys away on leave he dug the
pits at night. It was the dry season, and the ground was hard
as stone, and he was obliged to use an auger and scoop the loose
earth out with his hands lest any sound should attract attention.
Every now and then he would run in and pass a few minutes with
his wife in her weakness. And all the time the air was rilled with
the sound of dances and the agitated insistent beating of war
drums.

Dr. Laws also packed up all his own most valuable goods under
cover of preserving them from dust, and had them ready to ship
to Likomo or Cape Maclear at a moment's notice. One Sunday,
while on his way to Marenga to preach, he overheard two boys
speaking about "the white man hiding his instruments," which
evidently referred to Elmslie. How the knowledge of their plans
and movements became known to the natives was always a mystery.

XV. Prisoners

In order to inform the Tonga Chiefs of the situation the Doctor
called them together ; he urged them to combine and prepare for
defence if they deemed such a course advisable. They replied
that they looked upon him as their only stockade.

232 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" That is suicidal ! " he exclaimed. " We cannot fight on any
side ! "

"If we do fight we must send our wives and children to the
Mission for safety."

" They would simply be in a trap, if the Ngoni defeated you,"
the Doctor said.

Chikoko insisted.

" Well, you are practically ordering us to leave, for we cannot
agree to it, and will rather abandon the Station. Meanwhile, I
propose to go and see Mombera, though I have not much hope of
a favourable issue."

Matters were complicated by an unfortunate shooting incident
at the Station which created much bad feeling and involved the
dismissal of a white teacher. While the Doctor was engaged on
this vexatious case the Ilala arrived, bringing Mr. and Mrs. Smith
and Mr. and Mrs. M'Callum. He immediately sent the two former
back to Cape Maclear along with the goods already packed ;
M'Callum he kept to refit the steel boat Herga and make her
serviceable in case of flight, and as his wife pled to be with him
she was allowed to remain.

Some days later word arrived from the hills that Dr. Elmslie
had passed through a trying ordeal, and that Mrs. Elmslie had
been in a precarious condition but was improving. The Ngoni
were clamouring for Dr. Laws, and matters were coming to a
head.

The remainder of the goods, except those for immediate use,
being ready for shipment, the Doctor had the packages taken to
the beach, his object being to send them in the Ilala, with Mrs.
Laws and Amy and Mrs. M'Callum, to Likomo. Eighteen had
been placed in a large canoe when Chibano, the Chief whose village
was on the shore and who had control of the beach, appeared and
seized the canoe, beat the men, and threatened to kill anyone
who carried boxes from the Mission. The Doctor hurried down,
but Chibano, with vivid memories of " the eyes of war," discreetly
disappeared into the bush. The other Chiefs ostensibly disap-
proved of his action but secretly backed it up. That night they
placed armed guards on every path leading from the Station, and
the missionaries were prisoners.

Should they endeavour to escape ? The Doctor looked out on
the quiet night and saw the shadowy figures of the sentinels. In
the next room Mrs. Laws was walking up and down with the baby
in her arms and singing softly :

PRISONERS 233

" The Lord's my shepherd, I'll not want, He makes me down to lie
In pastures green : He leadeth me the quiet waters by. . . .
Yea, though I walk in death's dark vale, yet will I fear none ill:
For Thou art with me, and Thy rod and staff me comfort still."

The Doctor listened, deeply moved : all anxiety passed from
his spirit, and he faced the situation a calmer and stronger man.

It was not difficult to understand the attitude of the Chiefs.
They were afraid that he would abandon the Station for good and
leave them to their fate ; for once the Mission was gone the whole
Tonga tribe would be massacred or enslaved.

As determined as they were he was yet patient and wary. For a
whole week a struggle between reason and terror went on, while
the Ilala lay idle in the bay.

" We are not your slaves," the Doctor argued, " and you have
no right to detain us."

" You are not our slaves," was the invariable response, "but
you must not leave."

" I must visit Mombera and see if I cannot prevent war ; but
there may be an attack when I am away, and I will not go until
I see Mrs. Laws and the others and the wives and children of our
natives away to Likomo. For your own sakes you had better
settle quickly."

Still, in their mortal fear they would not agree, and watched
the houses day and night lest the missionaries should attempt to
escape by land or water. " The women and the goods can go,"
they said at last, " but no men." The Doctor would accept no
compromise. " Perfect liberty to go or stay without interference,"
was his stipulation.

" We are hemmed in," he wrote to Elmslie, " but trust to our
Heavenly Father to guide us to do what is right and just and true."

After much further negotiation the Chiefs gave in to the quiet,
stern man whom they could not intimidate. Then he said to them
with a smile, " As a matter of fact, I am going to remain here — at
any rate, as long as I can, but I must take precautions."

Sixty loads of medicines, calico, beads, and other goods were
at once shipped on the Ilala, which proceeded to Karonga, with
orders to return and take Dr. Henry and Mr. MTntyre down the
Lake on their way to open the Station at Chikusi's. For the Doctor
never allowed political commotion to interfere with the regular
work of the Mission. He believed that the performance of familiar
duties served to calm the nerves, and all this time the routine of
the Station was going on as if nothing were happening. At one

234 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONE

of the services four native children, whose fathers were in full
communion, were baptized, the first of the new generation of
Christians, an event which in some measure made up to him for the
anxieties and disappointments of the time. Not that he had lost
faith : that remained undimmed ; he was confident that all would
come right in the end. " We are wearied, fevered, and tired," he
wrote, " but God is our refuge and strength."

On 9th October a mail carried by trusty lads arrived from the
hills. " War is inevitable," wrote Dr. Elmslie. " Come at once."

The Doctor would have liked to have waited for the Ilala in
order to ship the goods for Chikusi's and see the party safely off,
but h felt he could no longer delay, and securing carriers and giving
them the lightest of loads he left on 20th October, a blazing hot
day, and after a forced march reached Nyuju forty-eight hours
later.

Scarcely had he gone when the Ilala arrived, and after him in
hot haste went a messenger with a letter from Mrs. Laws giving
him news of the events at the north end. A quarrel had occurred
between the Arabs and the natives, and blood had been shed. The
Arabs had closed in upon Mr. Monteith Fotheringham, the agent
at Karonga of the African Lakes Company, a brave, capable man,
whose sympathies were with the oppressed people, though he had
not committed himself in any way. He was alone, and Mr. Bain
had hastened down to his help. A rude fortification had been
constructed within which were 500 refugees, and the place was
besieged. "So," thought the Doctor, "three Stations are in
danger of destruction." Such repeated blows might have appalled
a smaller man, but they merely braced him to greater faith.
" These black clouds," he said, " may be the precursors of a great
blessing."

The Ilala went south, carrying Dr. Henry and Mr. MTntyre to
begin the new Station at Livlezi in Southern Ngoniland.

XVI. Victory

As soon as he heard that the Doctor had arrived Mombera
summoned his council, and meanwhile informal messages between
the two men were exchanged, with Williams, another Kafir agent
who had recently arrived from Lovedale, as the courier. The
Chief had no other terms to propose than those he had already
intimated.

On Thursday, 27th October, the call came. " It is a dark

VICTORY 235

time and we go with anxious hearts," wrote the Doctor, " but
trusting calmly in our Heavenly Father." Leaving Mrs. Elmslie
alone they crossed the river and entered the village and the open
cattle kraal. The indaba began at 8 a.m., and they were placed at
a spot where there was no shelter from the fierce rays of the tropical
sun, so that the Doctor, who was suffering from fever, prepared
himself to undergo a physical as well as a mental ordeal. An
imposing array of tribal notabilities were gathered round Mombera,
and the missionaries were asked what they had to say. The Doctor
countered by remarking that he had obeyed the summons of the
Chief and waited to hear what they had to say. Then the talking
began. Councillor after councillor rose, and in symbolic language
described the situation as they saw it.

" You are an unfaithful wife. Did not Mombera kill an ox for
you ? Did he not pay over cattle for you, and are they not in the
Mission kraal ? And yet you run off and leave Mombera, your
lawful husband, and live with another man — a man who is not
your equal but a wretched slave ! Is it right ? "

Mombera, who had been listening carefully, at last spoke.
" Lobarti, you must leave Bandawe and come up and live with us
in order that we may have a free hand to clear out the Tonga.
I have spoken," and he rose and stalked into the shade of a tree
in the middle of the kraal.

The discussion went on. Thinking to touch on their self-
interest the Doctor mentioned that calico had entered the country
long enough to stretch from the kraal to a hill to which he pointed
several miles away. The councillors stared.

" We have not seen any of it," they said.

" Because you will not let us work here," was the reply.

He spoke of the intention of the Trading Company to send up
an agent and of the developments that might take place. But a
Lake port was necessary for all this, and Bandawe would require
to be retained. As he gave them some vision of what they could
understand, a better material future, he hoped it would turn their
thoughts and decide them for peace.

Mahalule, who represented Mtwaro and was one of the most
influential men in the tribe, asked if a white man would not come
and settle at Mtwaro's village. The Doctor instantly saw the
bearing of the question. Mtwaro was heir-apparent to the chief-
tainship, and it was probably owing to his jealousy of Mombera
that difficulties had arisen. "We hope," he said, "to be able
very soon to place a European there."

236 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Then Mahalule spoke :

" We have no quarrel with you or even with the Tonga at
Bandawe, but we have with the men at Chintechi. You have tied
our hands hitherto, but we are now free. We agree, however, to
make a distinction between the Tonga around Bandawe" and those
at Chintechi in any war, and we promise that if the Bandawe people
refrain from helping the Chintechi people and refuse to receive
refugees, we shall not molest them ; otherwise, we shall destroy
them all."

The Doctor thought rapidly. This was a very great surrender.
It meant that Nyuju and Bandawe were safe if the Tonga at the
latter place acquiesced. It was in line with the policy of neutrality
which the Mission had adopted. He had never sought to dictate
to the Chiefs on either side what their political attitude ought to
be, though he had often pointed out to them that God's way and
not theirs was the only true path to power and peace. He therefore
stated that the Mission would remain entirely neutral, and that
though he could not answer for the Bandawe Chiefs he would con-
vey their message to them and endeavour to get them to accept the
terms, without accepting any responsibility regarding their decision.

Mombera's councillors rose.

" Oh, Chief ! " he cried. " It is spoken ! It is spoken ! It is
spoken ! The matter is finished, is finished, is finished ! Bayet6 ! "

" Bayete ! " came in deep, full-throated response from the
assembly.

It was four o'clock in the afternoon, and the Doctor, who was
fevered and weak, walked across to Mombera to bid him good-bye.
Mahalule was telling him the decision. The Chief turned to
" Lobarti " with a strange long look, and then addressing Mahalule
broke into a violent tirade. His desire to have the Doctor had been
thwarted, and he was very angry, but he was helpless in face of the
binding pronouncement that had been made.

That night messengers went speeding over the rough hill track
to Bandawe with news of the peace, and the Tonga carriers left the
quarters in which they had been confined and mixed freely with the
Ngoni.

The Doctor went to bed for two days, and by the time he was
better the Chief's wrath was spent ; he put himself out to be kind,
and the two men parted on the best of terms. His demand that the
Doctor should come up to the hills had been dictated by his desire
to save him from danger ; he feared that when the wilder spirits
of the tribe were raiding the Lake shore they might attack the

WAR WITH THE ARAB SLAVERS 237

Station and do him harm. " When a dog goes mad," he shrewdly
said, " it may turn and bite its master."

As the Doctor left, an army from the north came marching in,
regiment by regiment. Co-operating with two allied tribes it had
crossed the Loangwa and attacked the Wemba, — a powerful people
friendly with the Arabs, who had been raiding and slaughtering near
Bain's Station, — rushed and destroyed the head villages, speared the
population, and killed the Chief as he was escaping in a machila.
As the Doctor looked on that grim, bloodstained host, intoxicated
with victory, his heart filled with thankfulness that the indaba had
ended in peace.

Nor was his feeling lessened when, delivering the message to the
Tonga Chiefs, they looked blank and asserted it was a policy of
" divide and conquer," and refused to be bound by the arrangement,
for he knew that they realized there was no other alternative for
them but annihilation.

A white teacher was settled in Mtwaro's country at Ekwendeni
and the peace was never broken. The Ngoni were better than their
word : though they often sent war expeditions to the western dis-
tricts they never disturbed the Lake shore. That heathen, despotic
heart on the hills never lost its affection for the " father of the white
men," as he called the Doctor. " I never," says Dr. Elmslie, " knew
of his having stopped a single war-party from attacking the helpless
Tonga around Dr. Laws' station at Bandawe" because of his belief in
God ; but over and over again because of his attachment to Dr. Laws
he refused to sanction war, and to-day thousands of Tonga men and
women owe their lives to Mombera's attachment to him." " Why
he took a fancy to me," says the Doctor, " I do not know : it was
God's doing."

Years afterwards some robber bands raided in the neighbourhood
of Bandawe, murdering women and carrying off children to the hills.
Mombera seized two of the leaders. " You are not Chief," he said,
"lam. You went to Bandawe with war. Cut their legs. . . . You
killed Tonga. Cut their wrists . . ." and they crawled away to
hide and die.

XVII. War with the Arab Slavers

The Ilala arrived from the south the day after the Doctor arrived
from the hills. To his great relief, Consul O'Neill, Captain Elton's
successor at Mozambique, was on board. He had happened to be
at Cape Maclear on geographical work when the steamer put in there,

238 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and on hearing of the trouble at Karonga came full-speed north.
Mr. Sharpe was out hunting, but messengers were sent after him ;
on reaching Bandawe he promptly agreed to join the Consul, and
the Doctor gave them two trusty mission workers. " I hope," he
wrote, " the Consul will be able to settle the matter, but I question if
that is possible without fighting sooner or later."

He had always feared a conflict with the Arab slavers, who had
never ceased their activities or lessened the cruelty of their methods,
and he had repeatedly sought to undeceive those who imagined that
they had been intimidated by the planting of a few missions thou-
sands of miles apart, the operations of a private Trading Company,
and the passing visit of an occasional exploring expedition : it would
take more than these incidental forces to crush a vast organization
which had been exploiting Central Africa for centuries. Long before
this he had pointed out the probability of the slavers endeavour-
ing to seize and dominate the tract of land between the Nyasa
and Tanganyika Lakes with a view to throttling commercial and
missionary enterprise along that important highway : it was the
principal outlet from their immense hunting grounds in the west
to their markets on the coast, and it was unlikely that they would
submit to have it occupied and controlled by white men.

Various circumstances combined to hasten the issue. The heart
of the whole business was in Zanzibar, and when the London, the
great warship which symbolized the anti-slavery activities of Britain,
was withdrawn the wealthy dealers and traders renewed their opera-
tions, and caravans of Swahilis overran the interior. They eyed the
trading settlement at Karonga, and the mission stations on the
plateau, and quietly planted themselves at strategic points, built
stockades, even on the Stevenson Road, and seized the land of the
Konde\ who were too weak to resist. One of the leaders, Mlozi
by name, went so far as to proclaim himself Sultan, allied himself
with one or two western tribes, and worked in conjunction with
the slavers around Tanganyika. This invasion was the common
subject of talk amongst the natives, who never doubted the purpose
that underlay it — the establishment of a powerful Mohammedan
Empire in Central Africa.

The situation was complicated by attacks of ishmaelite Ngoni
on Arab caravans trading up-country, and one of the plans of Mlozi
was to execute a great sweeping movement along the Ngoniland
plateau and the Lake shore in combination with the Wemba tribe
and make a complete clearance of Ngoni, Tonga, and English. It

a scheme that made the Doctor exclaim,

WAR WITH THE ARAB SLAVERS 239

" Heathenism is bad enough to fight, but heathenism and Islam will
be still more dreadful. Portuguese bluster and ambition are bad,
but not so bad as the blood and cruelty of Islam." The campaign
of the Ngoni, already referred to, and the defeat of the Wemba,
prevented this project materializing, and Mlozi and his friends
concentrated on the north end. They became more and more
aggressive and insolent, and finally Fotheringham found himself
restricted in his movements to the Station. One afternoon Mr. Bain
at Mweniwanda received an urgent message from him appealing for
his presence and help as he was alone and in imminent peril. After
consulting with Dr. Cross, Bain decided to go. He left that night at
ten o'clock, made forced marches, narrowly missed being speared in
the darkness, and arrived at Karonga to find Fotheringham worn
out through want of sleep, fatigue, and strain.

The Arabs had definitely parcelled out the country amongst
themselves, and they now decided to dispatch the remnants of
the Konde people, who were hiding in the Kambwe lagoon two miles
north of the African Lakes Company's station. They surrounded
the spot and set fire to the dry reeds, and in a short time the place
was a roaring furnace. As the fugitives rushed out they were shot
and speared, many were seized by crocodiles, and others were
captured and enslaved. Mlozi and his companions sat amidst the
foliage of a tree watching the murderous proceedings. Next day
two villages were sacked with great slaughter.

It was at this point that the Ilala arrived at Karonga with
Consul O'Neill. -He proved an earnest and brave man with a
cool head and calm judgment. After ascertaining the position
he sent off dispatches on 5th November to Consul Hawes, the new
Consul at Blantyre, and Mr. Moir, and a request to Dr. Laws for
ammunition. " Be back in a week, "he said to Howat, the engineer.
Nicoll, another of the Company's agents from Tanganyika, he sent
farther north for native levies. Soon afterwards the Arabs were
reinforced and attempted to storm the fort, but were repulsed :
so fierce was the charge that the dead lay within a few yards of
the stockade. Investing the Station, they constructed platforms
in the trees which commanded the interior, and for five days and
nights poured in a constant fire. To protect the native women
and children trenches and pits were sunk, into which they huddled.
On Nicoll approaching with some thousands of north-enders the
Arabs withdrew to the hills. Dr. Cross, at Chirenje, was informed
of their proximity, and as he was alone made his way by a circuitous
route to Karonga.

24o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

It was not till 9th December, a month after she left, that the
Ilala returned with Mr. Hawes and Mr. J. Moir. Karonga was
a mass of ruins and no white man was visible. Running north
some twenty miles they discovered the party encamped on the
shore, and O'Neill, despairing of the steamer's arrival, on the point
of setting south in a canoe on which a sail had been rigged up.
An attack led by Hawes on the Arab stockade followed, in which
both Moir and Sharpe were wounded. The slavers were severely
punished, but the result was indecisive.

At the end of January 1888 the Doctor suggested that negotia-
tions might be opened with the Arabs. " It seems to me," he
wrote to Mr. Bain, " that it would be to Mr. Fotheringham's
greatest honour if he could persuade these fellows to come to terms
or evacuate the country without further bloodshed." A month
later a meeting was held in the Bandawe manse, at which there
were present Mr. John Buchanan, Acting-Consul — Mr. Hawes was
on leave — Mr. F. L. M. Moir, Dr. Laws, Dr. Elmslie, Mr. Bain, Messrs.
Smith, M'Callum, and Gossip, and two employees of the Company.
A resolution was passed expressing hearty approval of the proposal
to obtain a peaceful settlement of the trouble ; the terms suggested
were that Mlozi should raze his stockades and quit the country
within two months, the Company foregoing compensation for the
losses sustained.

Mlozi at first agreed, but later renewed hostilities, in the course
of which Mr. F. L. M. Moir was so seriously wounded that he was
invalided home, and never entirely recovered the use of his right
arm. The peace policy had failed. Even a special envoy from
the Sultan of Zanzibar, sent at the request of the British Govern-
ment, made no impression on the Arab leaders.

Dr. Laws was profoundly thankful that the clash had come
as it had done and had not occurred when the Mission alone was
in the field, and he realized more than ever the Guidance that had
led them to choose so secluded a spot as Cape Maclear for the
first station.

But he was again face to face with the old problem : were the
missionaries to take an active part in the fighting or were they to
be non-combatants ? The fact that British Consuls were in charge
was an important element in the situation, and he felt that they
had the right to call upon the staff for help. He could not himself,
however, order any member to assist, and when Gossip went up
for a time it was as a volunteer. For his own part he believed
he could do more good by remaining at Bandawe^, where the position

The Doctor crossing the River Rukuru

Travelling in a Machila

A Meanje Cedar Wood

he Quarry at the Institution

WAR WITH THE ARAB SLAVERS 241

was still precarious. He had to use his influence also to steady the
natives, as well as to keep a watch on the Arabs at Kota Kota.
On the whole, his view was that the missionaries ought to be non-
combatants and attend only to the sick and wounded.

What he felt strongly was that the Arab question was not one
affecting the African Lakes Company alone but the whole of the
British people. The Church could no doubt fight the matter on the
religious side, for what depended on the struggle was the religious
future of Central Africa — Mohammed or Christ ? But it should
rather lay stress on the slave-trade, and on that rouse the country
and force the Foreign Office to act through the pressure of public
opinion. If the Arabs won it meant the perpetuation of that
terrible traffic in human flesh which Dr. Livingstone had described
to the horrified world and which Britain had determined should
be suppressed.

To Dr. Smith he wrote : '■' Our Consuls are brave, earnest men,
working to the utmost and enduring much to carry out the wishes
of their fellow-countrymen towards suppressing the slave-trade.
But I fear the British public hardly realize the task they ask these
representatives of theirs to perform. They are sent out and
expected to do all by moral suasion ; they are put in a similar
though less favourable position than would be the case if any of
the Lords of the Courts of Justice in Edinburgh were to be com-
missioned to go to the Calton Jail and by conversation with its
inhabitants expect to turn all these criminals into sober, well-
doing citizens. So far the public have done well in sending its
Consuls, but it ought to extend its work and back them up by
such a force as will prevent their being the butt of slave-dealing,
red-handed murderers of men, women, and children. No words
can depict the woes of this traffic or paint it with too black a dye."

" Publicity " became his watchword. " Publish the facts "
was his message to those at the north end. " Let Britain know
what is going on." He was repeatedly asked himself by news-
papers at home to write for their columns, but believing that this
might react injuriously on the Mission work he refused all such
requests. The extracts from his letters which appeared in the
press of Scotland were sent without his knowledge, and this made
him more chary of writing freely about local conditions. Others,
however, followed his advice, and the articles in the Times and
elsewhere detailing the operations did much to inform the country
on the drama going forward in inner Africa.

16

242 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XVIII. Lord Salisbury says "No"

Larger questions even than the designs of the Arab slavers
were occupying the attention of Europe. Africa was being rapidly
partitioned out among the Powers, and with Germany pressing
in on the north it was not unnatural that Portugal, after drowsing
for more than three centuries, should waken up to the value of
that vast hinterland which, always within its grasp, it had never
attempted to occupy and control. Not one European Portuguese
had ever seen Lake Nyasa until 1886. If effective occupation
constituted the title-deeds to an ownerless country, Nyasa already
belonged to the British, for there were now seventy-two mission-
aries, planters, and traders in the district, and four steamers plying
on the river and Lake. Official Britain, however, in contrast to
Germany's eager appropriation of vast tracts, had no ambition
to acquire any portion of equatorial Africa. This was so well
known that those interested in Nyasa always disclaimed any wish
to see the Government incur the responsibilities of a protectorate.
Drummond was emphatic on this point in Tropical Africa, and the
missionary representations to the Foreign Office never went further
than to request that the Nyasa district should be safeguarded
from Portuguese intrusion and that the line of communication
from the coast should be kept open on a permanently fixed tariff.

The mind of the public was apparently with the policy of the
Government, to judge from journalistic comments on Dr. Laws'
letter which referred to the need of the Consul having some means
of defence in order to prevent the risk of outrage. This was sup-
posed to be a request for the protectorate, which it was stated he
would not get. " I had no thought of a protectorate in my mind,"
the Doctor wrote, " but only a desire to see the pacific measures of
the Consul in dealing with the slave-traders backed by such an
effective force as to give weight, point, and success to his diplomatic
efforts. . . . There is only one sure and abiding means for bringing
the terrible slave business to an end, and that is the Gospel ; but
other means can help." He made no concealment, however,
of his prepossession in favour of a British occupation. " Far
better," he remarked, " for the Portuguese to spend their energy
and what money they have on the development of their coast
settlements than annex more territory which they could not
thoroughly govern."

Writing to Consul O'Neill at this time, he said : " When
Captain Foot asked my opinion, and again when Consul Hawes

LORD SALISBURY SAYS "NO' 243

did, I urged the necessity of their having a gun-boat on the Lake
as the way to suppress the slave-trade with the least possible
bloodshed. I did not mean any particular class of vessel, but such
a one as could at any moment give an efficient protection to the
Consul on the Lake and teach the slave-trader a sharp lesson once
for all if no other reason could find an entrance to his brain. In
arguing in favour of the suppression of the slave-trade by force it
must not be supposed I am seeking to have slavery put down by
force, for domestic slavery cannot be dealt with in this summary
fashion. But given a judicious Consul, with tact in dealing with
the natives and slave-traders and this force at his back to show his
words had to be listened to and obeyed, most of the Swahili and
Arab slave-traders I know would make tracks for the coast in a
very short time."

The wisdom of these remarks was demonstrated in a dramatic
way by an outrage on Mr. Buchanan, the Acting-Consul. After
calling in at Banclawe he crossed in the Charles Janson with Mr.
Johnson, and made a friendly call on Makanjira, the Yao, but was
suddenly seized and stripped naked, only his stockings and shoes
being left him. Johnson was similarly treated. In the scuffle one
of their men was killed. They were imprisoned in a hut and irons
were brought, but both dared their captors to manacle them. The
boat in which they had come ashore, the British flag, and all their
personal equipment, were stolen. Only after considerable trouble
were they ransomed by the Captain of the steamer.

" This outrage," wrote Dr. Laws, " illustrates the attitude of
the slave-trader to the British Government in a way which will
probably open the eyes of the British public to the fact that the
slave-trade is not yet extinct nor amenable to consular moral
suasion in the way some of those who extol Arab and Mohammedan
influence and kindness would have them believe. ... If tins is
calmly swallowed by the liberty-loving British nation it has surely
changed much during recent years. It seems to me that the
Government can hardly refuse their support and assistance to the
A.L.C. in getting the necessary war material through the Portuguese
port of Quilimane. ... I long for peace, but peace based on
wickedness would be a hollow affair, and to withdraw from Karonga
now would, I fear, give an impetus to the slave-trade on the Lake
and to the arrogance of the Swahili coastmen which would undo
much of the quiet, earnest work of the past."

But the feeling of irritation and alarm at the trend of events
was growing in Scotland, and the Church of Scotland and Free

244 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Church united in a strong effort to rouse public opinion and bring
pressure to bear on the Government. The re-establishment of the
slave-trade in Livingstone's land, the abandonment of the north end
of Lake Nyasa to the slavers, the peril to British missions and trade,
the blocking tactics of the Portuguese, their seizure of an African
Lakes Company's steamer on the river — all combined made a case
which appealed to the imagination of the people. The movement
of the Churches had the strong support of men like Lord Balfour
of Burleigh, Lord Rosebery, and Lord Aberdeen, and was joined
in by the Universities Mission.

The three Missions met in conference in London, April 1888,
with members of Parliament and representatives of the Scottish
Geographical Society. It was proposed that the Government
should be asked to secure free or favourable transit to goods from
the coast, to declare Nyasaland from the Ruo northwards a sphere
of British influence, and that it should take action in regard to the
recrudescence of the slave-trade. " You will not get Lord Salisbury
to agree to the second request," several members of Parliament
declared, and it was decided to ask instead that the Government
should take what measures seemed best to secure the safety of
British subjects and interests in Nyasaland.

Subsequently Lord Salisbury received a deputation, the members
of the Free Church being Prof. Lindsay, the convener of the
Foreign Mission Committee, Prof. Henry Drummond, and Mr.
James Campbell.

Lord Salisbury showed great interest in the question, but he
laid down three definite negative points :

1. On no account would the Government send an armed

expedition to the Nyasa region.

2. On no account would the Government interfere with the

German sphere of influence.

3. On no account would the Government annex Nyasaland

or declare it British territory.

The three positive statements were :

1. In view of the treaty made with the Chief of Matabele-

land the Government would insist on the free navigation
of the Zambezi.

2. The Government would on no account assent to the

Portuguese assuming sovereignty over the Nyasa
region.

LORD SALISBURY SAYS "NO" 245

3. While the Government could not send armed assistance
to the African Lakes Company and the Missions they
had a perfect right and liberty to defend themselves,
and provision would be made for the free importation
of arms and ammunition.

It was not much, but it was something to go on with. Nyasa
interests had shown their strength, and although many were dis-
trustful of Lord Salisbury (and German intrigue in the background),
Dr. Laws for one believed that the Government could no more
prevent a protectorate coming than they could stop the tide from
flowing. He would not hear of a possible evacuation of the Lake
in the event of matters turning out differently. " That," he said,
" is only possible on one condition — that there is not a single in-
habitant left in the country. Arabs and slave-traders — scoundrels
as many of them are — are yet the parishioners of the Livingstonia
Mission and need the Gospel, though, probably enough, most of
them deserve the halter. We must bear their need in mind though
our blood boils at their cruelty. ... It would never do to go into
the interior and leave this ftstering mass of heathenism behind."

The Arab war went on. Captain Lugard, D.S.O., an officer with a
fine record, in search of adventure, appeared on the scene, and was
given command of the operations, endeavouring to destroy the
enemy's stockades, these " nasty wasps' nests," as Dr. Laws called
them, but without permanent results. The Captain's view was that
disciplined troops and artillery were necessary. " Why not cast a
small cannon or a mortar from brass wire ? " suggested the Doctor.
He also advised the formation of a native intelligence department :
" Organize a corps of spies to bring you news of the enemy's move-
ments— it will pay you well." After being severely wounded Lugard
stayed some weeks at Bandawe. The Doctor was much impressed
by his courage and character. " He is a brave man whom I like
very much : he has suffered a great deal without a murmur, and he
has the good of his country at heart." In the graphic account of
his experiences given in The Rise of our East African Empire, Lugard
refers to the " almost embarrassing kindness and generous hospi-
tality " he received from Dr. and Mrs. Laws. " Dr. Laws, that most
practical and ideal missionary, is a remarkable man, and his well-
worn library, including literature on a very wide range of subjects,
evidenced the extent of his reading. To his careful observation is
due much of the accurate knowledge we have both of the Lake and
of the mainland. . . . Though I do not indiscriminately admire all

246 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

missionaries, I am free to say that, among such of the Scottish
missionaries as I met in Nyasaland there was not a single one whom
I did not esteem. I have nothing but praise both of their methods
and their work." Lugard, as is well known, had afterwards a
distinguished career as an Empire builder and was latterly Governor-
General of Nigeria.

Despite the most gallant efforts, the advent of fresh volunteers,
the expenditure of much capital by the African Lakes Company,
and the indomitable pluck and perseverance of the brothers Moir, the
position remained much as it was. " Each month the war drags
on its weary course," wrote the Doctor ; " the prestige of the white
man on the Lake is lessening." Yet he never lost hope ; indeed, he
was actually preparing for the time when work would be resumed at
the north. He asked Fotheringham to send him down some boys
to train as teachers for the schools of the future, and shortly after-
wards he wrote again : " Send me a few more. I am looking
forward to the new need laid upon us when you repel Mlozi." Nine
young lads appeared with the next trip of the Ilala.

XIX. Spade Work and Illness

No outside distractions were allowed to interfere with the dis-
charge of everyday duty at Bandawe. The Doctor had a passion
for spade work, for the steady, persistent, patient effort, which so
many find it difficult to keep up in the tropics. He believed in it
as the only method by which the native mind could be transformed :
he had little faith in the permanency of a sudden, emotional con-
version of character — not, at any rate, with a primitive race hardened
by ages of habit. His task, therefore, was to carry out the hum-
drum activities of each day, and to guide step by step the faltering
progress of the people.

The unfolding political drama brought him much correspondence ;
by one mail at this time between forty and fifty letters would arrive,
and each had to be carefully considered and answered. Visitors of
all types also stayed at the manse. They seemed to trust him at
once : he gained the confidence of all, and many continued to
write him after they had left the country. He sent long letters in
reply in his clear, neat writing, which was as legible as print.

With the Ngoni terror receding into the background the people
became more normal in their lives, and their children crowded to
the schools at the Station and in the villages, the attendance rising to
1330, of whom 700 were girls, about as many as the Doctor, with his

SPADE WORK AND ILLNESS 247

limited resources, could manage. From 50 to 60 native teachers
were engaged in the work, and with these each day the Doctor studied
the next Bible lesson. There was no longer need for South African
Kafirs, who were, after all, as much foreign missionaries as the
Europeans, and the Doctor was already looking forward to possessing
an efficient native staff.

Similar progress was also being made in Ngoniland, where Mr.
Charles Stuart from Aberdeen, a man of the finest type, steady and
calm and as true as steel, had begun to organize the educational
work ; and also at Cape Maclear, where, on a visit, the Doctor
baptized four men and three women and ten children, and as many
as fourteen natives sat down at Communion. Under the care of
Albert the little native church continued to shine like a clear light
in the darkness.

The most important factor now in the work, one of more value
than many missionaries, was the native New Testament. Hitherto
the Doctor's single precious manuscript had been lent out to the
teachers. Now, thanks to the National Bible Society of Scotland,
it had been multiplied into hundreds of printed copies, which were
read by teachers, scholars, and workers, and pored over at night by
the dim light of wood fires. The Doctor had long entertained a
dream of doing his own printing on the Station, and this the children
of the Free Church enabled him to realize by subscribing for a small
Albion hand-press, Mr. W. Thomson, another Aberdeen man,
coming out to train a staff and superintend the work. In a short
time it was turning out copies of Mark's Gospel in Tonga and Ngoni,
the Sermon on the Mount in Ngoni, Harry's Catechism in Ngoni,
alphabet and lesson sheets by the thousands, schedules, cheque-books,
passage -tickets, and all the miscellaneous printing of the Stations.

In other directions the influence of the Mission was being felt.
One day the Doctor was told that Chimbano was dead. He hastened
to the village and appealed to his sons not to put any persons to
death. Invited to the funeral he discovered in time that it was
a dummy one arranged for his benefit and did not go. Only one
woman was killed at the real burial instead of a score as was the
custom, though a mwave ordeal was held to ferret out the bewitcher
and slayer of the Chief.

It was with great relief that the Doctor, over-driven and harassed
by want of men, heard of a movement in the Dutch Reformed
Church of South Africa to assist in the work of the Livingstonia
Mission. A number of ministers had agreed to contribute £10 each
to support a missionary, and at the suggestion of Dr. Stewart and

248 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Mr. John Stephen, a member of the Livingstonia Committee, then
in South Africa, they adopted Nyasaland as their sphere. Their
pioneer agent arrived in July 1888 in the person of the Rev. A. C.
Murray, B.A., with whom the Doctor formed a warm friendship.
He was sent up to the north-end stations for a time with Dr. Cross
and Mr. Bain, and had his share of illness and trying experiences
before settling in the following year at Mvera, in the hills at the
south end of the Lake.

Mr. Bain, a brilliant missionary, who had acquired three languages
and gained great influence over the natives, came south after his
long period of adventure and strain on his way home on furlough.
While passing through some swamps he got soaked, and again in a
small boat was drenched during a thunderstorm, and remained wet
all night. At Bandawe lie fell seriously ill, and Dr. Laws fought hard
for his life, but in vain. Realizing that the end was near, Bain said
to his colleague, " I trust the death of one may not in any way
damage the work. May you fellows who are left go on with it
until it reaches a success you never thought of." Little Amy,
awed and wondering, placed a few white flowers on the lifeless
breast, and at sunset his fellow-Christians, European and native,
carried him out on their shoulders to the cemetery within sound of
the surf on the Lake.

A feeling was growing in Scotland that Bandawe was un-
healthy. The Doctor combated the idea and quoted the opinion
of the Rev. W. P. Johnson, who knew the Lake perhaps better
than anyone else, that it was the healthiest spot on its shores.
Believing that " God's ways are the ways of common sense " the
Doctor was willing to go elsewhere, but he opposed the proposal
that the Station should be abandoned altogether, for two reasons
which he expressed thus :

1. Christ chose to work in unhealthy malaria-stricken

Capernaum, so that it came to be called His own
City.

2. It is enough that the servant be as his Master.

His objection was all the stronger from the fact that spiritual
results were now beginning to appear. Within a radius of 10 miles
there were from 20,000 to 30,000 people all readily listening to the
Gospel. The poison ordeal and faith in witchcraft were fast losing
their power. In April 1889 he baptized five adults of the Nyanja,
Tonga, and Yao tribes, and three children. Apart from this the
gardens on which so much labour had been expended were flourish-

SPADE WORK AND ILLNESS 249

ing. There were at least 3800 plants growing — mangoes, oranges,
lemons, guavas, pomegranates, custard apples, figs, peaches, grana-
dillas, bananas, all bearing well ; coffee, tomatoes, and cape goose-
berries were luxuriant ; 1000 pineapples had been gathered.
Thousands of plants had also been distributed to other stations
and to the people.

Early in 1890 the Doctor had several turns of fever ; and some
premonition seems to have weighed upon him, for he wrote to
Dr. Smith a letter, " in view of the possibility of my death." Shortly
afterwards he was prostrate with one of the severest attacks he had
ever experienced. Mr. Gossip was also ill, and when the Doctor
became unable to follow his case or his own he sent for Dr.
Elmslie, who came in hot haste over the hills, through a thunder-
storm and heavy rain which flooded the rivers, barred his way,
and cut him off from his carriers, so that he had to sit all night
under a bush with an umbrella up and his clothes dripping. Dr.
Laws was so feeble when he arrived that he was unable to lift a
cup to his lips; he tried to tell Elmslie the temperature and
condition of others who were ill, but the words would not come
at his command. The feebleness passed into stupor, and Dr.
Elmslie at last determined to take him up to the hills in the hope
that the journey might bring about a reaction. He was carried
in a machila, four days being taken to the journey, and at first
revived, but fell back into extreme weakness. One night it was
thought that he was passing away. Outside the hyenas were
howling, a sign, according to native belief, that a death was near.
Dr. Elmslie prayed with him. Then, to relieve his emotion, he gave
him a dig in the ribs. The Doctor laughed, and from that moment
began to improve. There was never any doubt in his mind that
he owed his life to the promptitude, skill, and unwearied kindness
of his colleague.

" Before I left in April," he wrote, " I had the privilege of
baptizing two young men and the child of one of them, who are
the first-fruits of the Ngoni tribe to Christ. We rejoice and thank
God for His blessing on the labours of faithful men, some of whom
have passed away. One of the young men was a servant boy to
Koyi, and the patient teaching and godly life of William did much
to establish him in the faith. Both are teachers."

The Universities Mission staff across in Likomo — they had
established their headquarters, and were building a cathedral on
the island, making it a sort of African Iona — heard of the Doctor's
illness and at once offered the use of their steamer if he wished to

250 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

go home. " It is at your disposal," wrote Bishop Maples,
who was then in charge. The relations of the two missions con-
tinued to be of the friendliest nature, one vying with the other in
kindly helpfulness. If there was another to rival the Doctor in
hardihood it was his old friend, Johnson, now Archdeacon — thin,
ascitic, saint-like, with marvellous powers of endurance. Once
when out of sorts he was induced to board the steamer in order to
be taken across to see Dr. Laws. At the last moment he and his
box went ashore. " What is the matter ? " he was asked. " I
am not going ; if I do, Dr. Laws will pack me off home, and I don't
want to go." There was no use presenting Johnson with any-
thing, for he would give it away to the natives. He turned up at
Bandawe one day with a black boy whom he had found being sold
as a slave and had bought for ten shillings. It was very difficult
to get him to tell of his adventures ; when asked about them his
jaws would snap and not a word would he say.

By and by the Committee at home learnt of the Doctor's ill-
ness, and placed on record their deep sense of the value of his service
in Africa and urged him to come home on furlough. To Mr. Thin,
who was now a representative of the United Presbyterian Church
on the Committee, he wrote : " I'll come as soon as I see that my
duty permits me to leave. This is a critical time in the history
of the country and we do need more helpers " — always that harp-
ing on assistance which the Committee was never able to satisfy.
Again he wrote : " Furlough means a detestable break in one's
work, especially when there is much more to do than can be over-
taken ; but there is Amy to be considered : heathenism is horrible
for a child ; but for her I would not go home."

As the days went by, however, furlough receded further into
the background. The routine duties of teaching, preaching, and
office work went on increasing, while the building work never
seemed to get finished. He was now corresponding with Mr.
Binnie, a well-known Glasgow valuator and contractor, originally
a member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, who had been on
the Livingstonia Committee from the beginning, and took the
deepest interest in its development, and in one of his letters he
expressed a desire to be rid of the thatched roofs which caused so
much trouble, and proposed that galvanized iron sheets should be
adopted. Mr. Binnie interested himself in the matter, and the
Committee sent out some roofing as an experiment. This proved
so successful that the material was generally adopted for the
purpose.

251

XX. The Coming of Government

The pressure of public opinion stimulated the Foreign Office to
action. Mr. H. H. Johnston was appointed Consul to Portuguese
East Africa, with instructions to travel into the interior and secure
treaties with the Chiefs beyond the Portuguese sphere. He first
went to Lisbon and returned with a draft agreement which settled
the whole question, but as it generously included the Shire High-
lands within the Portuguese area the Foreign Office promptly
turned it down. Ere he reached the Zambezi the Portuguese,
regretting nothing more than their failure to occupy the most
desirable region in all Central Africa, made, at this eleventh hour,
a brave effort to retrieve the position by dispatching an imposing
force inland under Major Serpa Pinto — " a purely scientific ex-
pedition," remarked the Doctor, the instruments being Gatling
guns, rifles, and cannon ! The news of the expedition created
intense excitement in Scotland, and energetic action was taken
by the Mission and industrial interests concerned to represent
the gravity of the situation to the Government. It was Dr.
Livingstone who, they pointed out, at the instance of the British
Government and at a cost of £30,000, opened up the Zambezi and
Nyasa region. The Missions were established to carry on his work,
which was also the work of the British Government and the
British people. Was all that had been done to go for nothing ?
A petition signed by upwards of 11,000 ministers and elders backed
up these representations.

Meanwhile Johnston went on with his task, and worked his
way up the Lake, stayed with Dr. Laws, who found him " a plucky
and agreeable fellow," and proceeded to the north end, where he
negotiated terms of peace with Mlozi — which did not, however,
end the slavery business. While he was on his further journeys
Major Serpa Pinto continued his advance, but was opposed by the
Makololo. On receipt of the news of the first conflict Mr. Buchanan
promptly issued the proclamation which had been prepared :

" To all whom it may concern.

" I hereby declare that the Makololo, Yao, and Machinga
countries within the limits cited below are, with the
consent and at the desires of their Chiefs and people,
placed under the protection of Her Most Gracious
Majesty the Queen oi Great Britain and Ireland,
Empress of India, Defender of the Faith, etc.

252 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" Given at Mlomba, Makololo country, this twenty-first of
September one thousand eight hundred and eighty-
nine."

Then followed the boundaries, the confluence of the Ruo with
the Shire being the lowest point.

Thus balked, Major Serpa Pinto returned to the coast for in-
structions, and left his forces in command of a lieutenant, who,
thinking an accomplished fact would be difficult to gainsay, pro-
ceeded to fight his way to Blantyre. This was more than Lord
Salisbury could stand, and a vigorously worded dispatch was
sent to Lisbon. The result was made known to the Doctor by a
notice informing him and other British subjects that " the Portu-
guese Government have agreed with Her Majesty's Government
that all Portuguese troops on the Shire, in Makololo country, and
in Mashonaland shall be withdrawn, and that no attempt shall be
made to establish and exercise Portuguese jurisdiction in these
territories." The whole matter was then relegated to the region
of European diplomacy.

While the negotiations were going on, in 1890, much feeling was
caused, both in Nyasaland and in Scotland, by the delimitation of
the spheres of influence of Britain and Germany. The Livingstonia
Mission fought for a more northerly boundary, but much to the
Doctor's regret the Anglo-German Convention fixed it practically
alongside the Stevenson Road, and one fine station, that of Kara'-
muka, where the Mission possessed land and work had been going
on for two years, was included within the German area — why, it
was difficult to surmise. In this magnificent region of hill and valley
the Moravian Mission began work. When the Doctor heard of
their purpose he said, " If the Moravians keep up the tradition
of their Church we shall have good neighbours." The first agents
called at Bandawe on their way out, and " good neighbours " they
promised to be, and were. These missionaries were followed by
others of the Berlin Society. Both received help from the Doctor
in the shape of native teachers and artisans.

The old problem of Kota Kota was also giving the Doctor much
thought at this time. The schools of the Mission now stretched
nearly to that Mohammedan centre, and on the occasion of a visit
from Jumbe the latter asked for a teacher and sent three lads to the
Station. It was the Doctor's plan to place a medical missionary
and an assistant there, but the lack of men and the exigences of
furloughs caused delay. A tentative proposal was made by the

THE COMING OF GOVERNMENT 253

Universities Mission to send a native teacher to the spot, but Bishop
Smythies told the Doctor that this could not be done for a year.
" We have, therefore," he wrote to the Committee, " a year in
which to make good our hold of the west side." Some members
of the Committee thought that the Mission might now withdraw
from the Lake shore altogether, but the Doctor strongly opposed
such a suicidal policy. With the British protectorate that was
coming there would be an influx of Europeans, and there was
urgent need of strengthening the forces of righteousness all along
the shore — the base-line of further advance — rather than handing
it over to the influences of heathenism and European vice. He
appealed for more workers to carry out his plan, but if these could
not be sent he felt that he could not accept the responsibility of
preventing the Anglicans doing Christ's work.

In the autumn the fate of Nyasa was decided. The Imperial
Government were very reluctant to assume the administration of a
country which would, obviously, not pay its expenses for some
time to come, and it is doubtful what would have happened had
not the British South Africa Chartered Company been formed,
and had Mr. Cecil Rhodes not come to the rescue. He of all men
then had the prescience to see what was coming, and the faith and
courage to accept the responsibilities which destiny presented to
Britain. He was keenly interested in the Zambezi region. In his
own words he was building " a five-storey edifice " : (1) Cape
Colony ; (2) the Transvaal ; (3) Mashonaland ; (4) the Shire
Highlands ; and .(5) Nyasaland. By arrangement with him the
territories adjoining Nyasa were included in the charter of the
Company, but the country was to be proclaimed a Protectorate
and the administration would be in the hands of the Foreign Office,
who would appoint a Commissioner and Consul-General. Rhodes
guaranteed at least £10,000 a year for police and other expenses, and
was given a consultative voice and vote in all matters relating to
the country. The Commissioner appointed was Mr. H. H. Johnston,
but he was to all intents and purposes the agent of Mr. Rhodes.

To Rhodes the more important areas were : (1) the Mashonaland
plateau ; (2) the Shire plateau ; and (3) the Nyasa-Tanganyika
neck plateau. His policy was to hold these at all hazards. He
had three opponents in his mind — the Germans, the Portuguese,
and the Arabs. No roads must be constructed to suit the first,
and he was therefore dead against any further highway being
constructed between the two lakes : the Portuguese must be kept
out of the Shire* area and must provide free navigation of the

254 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

river, and the Arab slavers must be systematically dealt with and
disposed of.

Johnston, the Commissioner, was an extremely able man, and
entered on his duties with great intelligence and vigour. From
Zomba, which had been chosen as the seat of Government, he wrote
to the Doctor : " I have thought and talked and written much
about you since we parted, and I look forward with pleasure to
your co-operating with me in bringing this country into ways of
happiness and peace." Yet the minutes of the Livingstonia Com-
mittee bear witness to the fact that the members — who included
some of the shrewdest and most successful business men in Scotland
— did not trust him and were not satisfied even after they had
personally interviewed him as well as Rhodes. The same feeling
seems to have influenced the missionaries in the field, though Dr.
Laws more than once urged that he should be given time and be
loyally supported in his most difficult task. The curious thing was
that Rhodes himself was distrustful ; he believed that Johnston
had a policy and ambitions of his own regarding the Arabs and the
direction towards which Nyasaland should gravitate. In any case,
he wished British Central Africa, as the Protectorate was called
when it was proclaimed in 1891, to be based on Cape Town and
not on Zanzibar and India, and so informed the Livingstonia
missionaries. The arrangement with Rhodes lasted for some
years, when the Imperial Government took over the entire manage-
ment of the Protectorate.

Coincident with the advent of the organized forces of civiliza-
tion several of the Chiefs, types of the old conditions, passed away.
In August 1891 Mombera died. " I am sorry," wrote the Doctor.
" His connection with the Mission and myself was a strange and
eventful one. Like Cyrus of old, God seems to have called him and
used him for the special purpose of admitting the Gospel to his
people, though he knew it not. He was to outward appearance a
scoffer to the last day I met him. He made a promise to me that
no army should be sent by him to attack the people here, and he
held his bloodhounds in leash with an iron grip and kept his promise,
though often at the risk of his own popularity. Troublous though
the immediate future seems likely to be, it will work out for the
opening up still further of this tribe. Proud, stubborn, and haughty
in the past, the change is at hand." Owing to the influence of the
Mission no bloody rites followed the Chief's death, nor that of
Mtwaro, who died a few months later. It was different in the case
of Chikusi in the south. With him were buried seven of his wives,

THE COMING OF GOVERNMENT 255

while thirty persons succumbed to the poison ordeal. Mr. Stuart,
who was then at the station, saw the vultures and hyenas feasting
on the dead bodies.

In the same year the work of the Doctor was recognized by
Aberdeen University, which conferred upon him the degree of
D.D. He was busy making bricks and shipping them when a letter
came addressed with the new title, and he threw it down thinking
some one was trifling with him.

For the missionaries the years of peril were over. Two remark-
able struggles had taken place : one carried on solely with spiritual
weapons, the other with physical force. Through the agency of
the first a large and powerful tribe, the most savage in equatorial
Africa, had been conquered and led into paths of peace. It had
been the case of a few Christian white and black men pitted against
a nation, and they had won. The measure of their victory was
not yet complete, but, as it was, there was no more remarkable
episode in the history of moral effort and achievement.

Equally notable was the prolonged life-and-death conflict with
the Arab slavers. Here was a small trading company, closely
associated with a missionary enterprise, in a vast tropical no-man's-
land, forced to accept the challenge of a slavery organization which
had been at work for centuries and continued to operate in spite of
international treaties and the vigilant forces of civilization. With
the assistance of a few gallant volunteers the two managers had
kept up a fight for long years in the effort to break the power of the
powerful gang, and they had succeeded in exhausting it to the
breaking point. Had it not been for their tireless courage and
faith the destiny of the country might have been far different.

The missionaries, the missionary leaders in England and Scot-
land, and the Moirs were the real founders of Nyasaland. There
were others who believed that things began with their own advent.
The author of Nyasaland under the Foreign Office says : " Without
wishing to detract in any way from the importance of the
work accomplished by these earlier pioneers " — and he includes
Dr. Livingstone — " I venture to think that the true history of the
country begins with its direct administration by the Imperial
Government " ! Which illustrates the type of official mind that
conferred honours on many of those who took part in the events
of these later years and let the services of the brothers Moir to
the Empire and to Africa pass unnoticed and unrewarded.

PART FOUR
THE YEARS OF PROGRESS

I. Home and America

Independently of the political changes the work of the Mission
had reached the stage when a further advance in methods was
essential. At Bandawe" the staff could not cope with the natural
development. Every Sunday, apart from the Station meetings,
from twenty-five to thirty services were held in the district. The
schools extended over an area 40 miles by 8, but there was no limit
to the work except that caused by lack of teachers. Accommoda-
tion was not in the question, for with the Doctor's scanty resources
it was impossible to build schoolhouses, and the great majority of
the classes were held in the shade of some large tree, with the result
that in the rainy season the scholars only attended in the intervals
between the torrential blasts ; and wearing but an inch or two of
bark cloth or calico they often suffered from cold and were absent
through sickness. It was not easy to keep an accurate roll of the
attendances, the boys and girls changing their native names so
often that even their parents did not always know them by their
latest ones, but the actual number present was usually over 5000.
The Doctor regarded the schools as his greatest evangelizing agency,
and paid special attention to the Bible lesson, following the principle
of the German proverb, " What you would put into the nation put
into its schools."

The teachers, one hundred and fifty in number, were still them-
selves only in the elementary stage of education, and were being
taught as well as the children. Those under the tuition and ob-
servation of the Doctor were, after a time, sent out to the outgoing
districts, and another batch brought in, and by this system of
rotation the whole passed regularly through his hands. They were
his one hope for the future, and very anxiously did he study their
individual characters and watch their growth in self-discipline and
mental ability ; when twenty-four were baptized in a body he saw

«6

I

9 9;9

a

CARPENTER APPRENTICES WHO WALKED

IO,000 MILES TO THE INSTITUTION AT

LlVINGSTONIA TO EDUCATE THEMSELVES

AND LEARN A TRADE

The First Boy trained

as a Telegraphist. He

replaced a European

Ngoni Chief (right) and his
Headman, of the Present Day

Yoram Mpande (p. 357)

HUH

LlVINGSTONIA G.P.O., BUILT BY THE SCHOOLBOYS

The Main Avenue, with the European Cottages beyond — these are
on the Edge of the Plateau

HOME AND AMERICA 257

beginning to be realized his dream of a native church and a Christian
community.

The medical work was also increasing rapidly, and he strained
every nerve to meet the demands it made upon him, for its value
as a handmaid to the spiritual side of the Mission was undoubted.
" I know," he said, " of no better way of commending the Gospel to
the heathen, and especially to the Mohammedan, than that of the
medical mission." To assist him he was training lads to dress ulcers
and common wounds and make up medicines, and one had become
so competent that he was able to administer chloroform.

But he felt the time had come when that central educational
institution up to which the course of events had been leading all
these years must be established in order to provide the efficient
native staff of teachers, evangelists, and pastors required to meet
the needs of the country. To it must be added a small hospital
for the training of nurses, dispensers, and medical assistants. " A
conviction is growing in my mind that God's time is now near in
which He will lead us to the place which He has reserved for us
for His work. Water, power, and wood are the chief things. I
do not overlook population, but a small community may be an
advantage at first." He resolved to go to Scotland to consult with
the Committee and secure the interest and financial support that
was necessary.

When, after another sharp attack of fever, which caused grave
concern to the Committee, he received a cablegram from Mr. White,
the convener, " Return home now," he packed up, and he,
Mrs. Laws, and Amy sailed from Bandawe in October 1891. He
took with him Yuraia Chirwa, a young Tonga teacher ; Charles
Domingo, his house boy ; and another lad, with the purpose of
leaving them at Lovedale for training during his absence in
Scotland.

At the foot of the Lake he found Mr. Johnston strongly entrenched
in a position opposite the village of Mponda, who was still engaged
in slave-trading. The Commissioner told the Doctor that he was
determined to put a stop to the traffic round the Lake, and would
take in hand one notorious Chief at a time until all were dealt with :
he was at the moment watching Mponda.

In the course of a long interview the two men exchanged views
regarding the political development of the country. Johnston
said he proposed making a beginning with taxation in the Shire*
province, afterwards in the Konde district, and then on the
Bandawe plains, leaving Ngoniland until later. The Doctor's
17

258 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

anxiety was with regard to the Ngoni. He saw that the Commis-
sioner relied entirely on force for the subjugation of the tribes, and
he feared for the consequences in the case of so proud a race.
" Don't fight them," he urged — " enlist them." Captain Macguire,
the military commander, who was present, responded instantly
to the idea of a new recruiting-ground and backed him up. The
Doctor went on to commend to the Commissioner the wisdom of
visiting the Ngoni himself. " Your tact may save the situation
when a subordinate will only create confusion and disturbance."
Johnston agreed to go up to Ngoniland when he could spare the
time.

The Doctor, who feared no man, referred to the Commissioner's
alleged liking for the Arabs, but any pro-Arab tendency was denied.
He also emphasized the need for a high moral tone amongst the
officials of the administration, frankly expressing a dread of Euro-
pean occupation on account of the evils it would introduce and
the effect of these on the mind of the natives, who had hitherto been
accustomed to look upon white men as superior beings.

On reaching the Shire Highlands he was almost startled by the
material changes that had come so swiftly : here was a new country
in active development, roads running everywhere, officials carving
out the conditions of civil life, planters breaking up the rich soil,
traders building shops and warehouses and introducing the mer-
chandise of civilization. But the morality was not all that could
be desired, and, studying the effect of the conditions on the Blantyre
Mission, there came to his mind the conviction that the further the
proposed Livingstonia Institution could be built from any European
centre the better it would be for the native inmates and the success
of the work.

Before leaving Blantyre he learned that Johnston had forced
matters to a head at Mponda's, had shelled the village, released
a body of slaves, and brought the Chief to terms. Later came the
news that in the course of operations against Makanjira, Captain
Macguire had been killed and a doctor and engineer treacherously
murdered — one of the worst incidents in that confused warfare,
which continued for years before the slave trade was finally
suppressed.

The Doctor went to Lovedale to leave the three native boys, and
then visited all the leading Dutch churches in Cape Colony, in order
to interest the members in their side of the mission work ; and at
Cape Town he had an interview with Mr. Rhodes regarding the
position of matters in the Nyasa district, and there he gave an

HOME AND AMERICA 259

address on Nyasa which had an unlooked-for result. Amongst his
audience was one Joseph Booth, an exponent of the " Africa for the
African " principle, who made up his mind that the country de-
scribed would be a good land in which to carry on his propaganda.
He appeared later in the Shire Highlands, and, as will be seen,
gave much trouble ere he was deported.

During his furlough the Doctor worked day and night for
Livingstonia. He was one of the speakers on Foreign Mission
night at the General Assembly of the Free Church, finding himself
next to Dr. Stewart on the programme, and facing thirty-six student
volunteers for the foreign field. Telling something of the history
of Livingstonia he described the pitiful inadequacy of the staff and
pled for more workers. Then he announced his proposal for the
training institution for native teachers and pastors. " If Africa,"
he said, " is to be won for Christ — only there is no if about it — it
will be won by the Africans themselves."

To this scheme, an elaboration of his earlier one, he devoted
much serious thought and discussed the details endlessly with the
chief men on the Livingstonia Committee. The question of the
site was the problem which most perplexed the latter : upon that
depended the success or failure of the enterprise. But the Doctor
had no fear. " I believe," he said, " that God has the required
site reserved for us, though I cannot at present tell where."

Knowing the boon bursaries in connection with the University
of Aberdeen had been to the students of limited means in the
north of Scotland, he wished to see similar provision made for the
education of the boys and girls in connection with the Institution,
and was successful in interesting various persons in the matter and
securing £5 per annum from each for a specified boy or girl. This
scheme developed with the years, and though the students did not
always turn out well, it proved a valuable factor in the educational
work of the Mission.

The Doctor's reputation was now so high that a movement was
set on foot to have him appointed to an important post in Edinburgh
for which he was peculiarly well fitted. When the matter came to
his notice he declined to be nominated. " I am booked for Africa
as long as strength lasts," he said. With a touch of his old humour,
he went to Miss Melville and informed her solemnly of the prospect
in store for her former Sunday-school scholar. She was sitting
by the fire. After glaring at him for a moment she turned, seized
the poker, and viciously stirred the coals. " A temptation of the
devil," she muttered.

26o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Thinking it would be good for those at home to realize how
missionaries worked together in their crusade against heathenism,
he went to London and spoke at the anniversary meeting of the
Universities Mission. To the Rev. Horace Waller he said he was
only trying to acknowledge the debt under which that Mission had
laid the world more than seventeen years before. Bishop Smythies
was there, and the Doctor's medical eye noted in him grave
symptoms that were the result of his strenuous life in East Africa.
It gave the Doctor what he called a " regular Bandawe night,"
when he used to lie half-awake haunted by the oppressive sense
that a patient was needing his care and treatment. " Those lonely
nights of watching on the Lake," he said, " have burned themselves
for ever into my heart."

When he was not engaged in addressing meetings he was visiting
(ducational and technical institutions, and printing works like
Nelson's in Edinburgh and Parlane's in Paisley, and generally
picking up and storing information that might be useful to him
in the future. It was chiefly the desire to enlarge his knowledge
that decided him to go as a representative of the Church to the
Fifth General Council of the Alliance of the Reformed Church
holding the Presbyterian System in Toronto. He proposed to
make a tour of Canada and the United States. It would cost him
both time and money, " but," he said, " if I can get knowledge
which will be of service to my companions on the Lake for our
common work I will be glad indeed." He and Mrs. Laws sailed
in July in the company of Professor Lindsay, the Convener of the
Foreign Mission Committee, with whom during the voyage he
discussed his scheme for the Institution and moulded it into

shape.

In his address to the Alliance he outlined the principles under-
lying the Livingstonia Mission, emphasizing the fact that the
missionaries were birds of passage, their object being to train up
a native staff and develop a native church. This vision of a native
church was at this time constantly in his mind. " I do not be-
lieve," he said, " that we should merely be a Presbytery of the
home church ; we should work towards a Central African Presby-
terian Church, which would include Blantyre and the Dutch."

In addition to visiting Quebec, Montreal, Toronto, and other
Canadian towns, he made an extensive tour of the principal cities
in the United States, such as Boston, New York, Philadelphia,
Baltimore, Washington, Pittsburg, Chicago, and Detroit, inspecting
the white and coloured colleges, technical schools, agricultural

IN CALABAR 261

institutes, and electrical and other works. He was impressed and
delighted with the ample floor space and complete equipment of
the educational and technical institutions, and had a keen eye
for all new devices in the matter of building material and construc-
tion ; in works where the machine power and light were generated
by water from river or falls he lingered long, studying the details of
installation and manipulation with an intensity which struck those
who showed him round.

At Philadelphia he made friends with a Quaker family, and
attended a meeting where there was a discussion on doctrinal
points. " Well, Robert," said one, " thou hast heard sound
doctrine to-day." " I think," he remarked, " that I have heard
sound Presbyterianism ! "

What he saw made him dissatisfied with narrow views and
parochial methods in mission work, and he came back possessed
by the American spirit of confidence and enterprise, and dominated
more than ever by the idea of doing things in a big way. He was
determined to go forward in God's royal service with larger faith
and wider vision, and make the Livingstonia Mission worthy of
the great cause it sought to advance.

II. In Calabar

His " Memorandum regarding the Organization and Develop-
ment of the Livingstonia Mission " was now as perfect as he could
make it. It was submitted to the Committee and ordered to be
printed and circulated. A pamphlet of twenty pages, it was a
complete statement of the principles underlying the establishment
and development of a mission among primitive peoples, and an
exposition of the best methods of carrying these into practice.
Beginning with the fundamental objects — the creation of a self-
supporting, self-governing, and self-extending native church and a
Bible-reading and Bible-loving population — it went on to describe
in detail the four mutually related lines of work, evangelistic,
medical, educational, and industrial, and then discussed the buildings
required, the staff, and the cost. But, as always, he emphasized
the primary motive in all missionary work, the bringing of the
pupils to Christ, for he believed that only in the moral change which
this created could a sure foundation be obtained for every kind of
progress.

His summary of his scheme will give the best idea of its com-
prehensive character :

262

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

BOYS

LITERARY SIDE

I. Elementary, or Village
School.
Vernacular ; and English,
Standard I.
II. School or Junior Depart-
ment.
English, Standards II., III.,
and IV.

(Three years' Course.)

III. Normal Department, or
Literary Course.
(Three years' Course.)

IV. Theological Department.
(a) Pastors.
(6) Evangelists.
(Three years' Course.)

V. A Small Hospital.

TECHNICAL SIDE

I. Native Industries.

Basket and Mat making.

II. Junior Department, or School
of Manual Training.

Courses —
i. Carpentry.

2. Wood-turning.

3. Forging.

4. Printing (alternative).
(Three years in all.)

III. Senior Department, or Ap-
prenticeship.

Trades —

1. Gardener and Agricul-
turist.
/2. Carpenter.
\3. Builder (brick or stone).
("4. Printer.
\5. Bookbinder.
Blacksmith.
Clerk or Storeman.
Telegraphist.
(Time, four or five years.)

GIRLS

I. Elementary, or Village

School.
II. Girls' School (same as II.
above) .
III. Bible School for Married
Teachers' Wives.

I. Native Industries.

II. Household Work, Sewing,
Washing, and Baking.

III. The Work of their Cottage
Homes and Gardens.

To Mr. Murray in Africa he wrote : " My scheme is an earnest
endeavour to bring all my past study, observation, experience, and
travel to bear on the question how best to bring the Gospel of Christ
to the people of Central Africa and their children."

At this time the United Presbyterian Church was considering
the establishment of a similar institution in their Calabar Mission
on the west coast of Africa, and the Doctor was asked to attend the
Foreign Mission Board and give them the benefit of his advice.
When the matter was being discussed and it was proposed that some
one should go out and report, the Rev. G. L. Carstairs suddenly
said, " Laws, will you not go yourself ? " A chorus of approval

IN CALABAR 263

greeted the remark. Laws sat back in his chair, and there flashed
upon him the memory of that early day in Aberdeen when Mr.
Goldie had told him of the needs of Calabar and he had longed to
go there. And now here was an offer to visit the same field.
And to the United Presbyterian Board he gave the same answer
as he had given long ago to the Free Church Board : " Get the
Livingstonia Committee to consent and I go." One fact largely
influenced him. He was anxious that the Livingstonia scheme
should not appear to come solely from himself : he wished his
colleagues to have a say in the founding of the Institution, and
if he were away for six or eight months there would be time for
them to be consulted. The Livingstonia Committee gave a cordial
consent to the request of the United Presbyterian Church and
granted the Doctor six months' leave of absence.

At the same meeting his memorandum was discussed and was
approved in its entirety, and copies were sent out to the missionaries
in Africa. Two principles, the Committee stated, were absolutely
settled — there was to be one central training institution for the
whole of the Mission, and it was to be situated on the hills in the
vicinity of timber and pure water. Apart from these points criti-
cism and suggestion were invited. In order to set free the ordinary
income of the Mission a special building fund was initiated, to
be expended gradually on the erection of the Institution and
permanent and healthy houses at the other stations : to this
the Convener, now elevated to the peerage. as Lord Overtoun,
contributed £5000,- and Mr. Stevenson £4000, whilst Dr. Laws
obtained promises of further large sums. In all his efforts the
latter received the utmost sympathy and help from Lord Overtoun,
who treated him like a brother and brought all his shrewd business
capacity to bear on the affairs of the Mission.

Along with his fellow-Commissioner, the Rev. W. Risk Thomson,
previously of Jamaica, who had been appointed Missionary Super-
intendent of the proposed Institution, a congenial colleague, the
Doctor left Scotland in July, and in Liverpool stayed with his old
fellow-pioneer, Mr. Johnston, now a doctor with a good practice.
On the West Coast he found himself again in that atmosphere of
fever, invalidism, and death which characterizes the low borderland
of Africa. The first news that met him was the report of the death
of Mrs. Cruickshank, wife of his cousin, who was in charge of a
station on the Cross River, and no sooner was he on shore than he
came in contact with fever patients, a poison ordeal case and the
destruction of twins.

264 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

There was a touching meeting at Creek Town with Mr. Goldie.
The old man, venerable in figure and face, gave him a patriarchal
welcome, eagerly grasped his hand, and kissed him on the cheek.
Then he turned to Mr. Thomson, and was delighted with the
intelligence that many of the negroes who had received instruction
from him in Jamaica half a century before were still steadfast in
the faith. Not less dramatic was the Doctor's meeting with his
cousin, the playmate of his childhood, the gentle and modest mis-
sionary who, in his own way, had been doing first-rate pioneer
service up-river. " His station," wrote the Doctor, " has been
carried on in a quiet, unostentatious way, but with a method and
regularity in its working so decided as to be unseen and unheard,
but evidently carefully planned and wrought out. God has blessed
his work and will do so more and more."

It was the rainy season, and an unusually wet and protracted
one. For three months during the sojourn of the deputies there
were only five dry days, and as much of the country was in flood
the Doctor was unable to carry out his schemes of exploration in the
interior. His movements also continued to be restricted by claims
upon his professional services. One day a letter arrived from
Miss Slessor in the Okoyong territory, stating that she was ill
with dysentery and war had broken out. " She must be very ill,"
was the general remark, " or she would not have said anything
about it." " It was not to be wondered at," wrote the Doctor,
" seeing that she started by night and walked to Creek Town,
reached it at 5 a.m. dripping wet, got a change, some milk she
needed, and was away in a canoe by 7 a.m. She is a bit of a char-
acter." Off went the Doctor at 9 a.m. in a canoe. On the river
a squall burst, and there came such a dense downpour of rain as
he had never witnessed even on Nyasa ; he could not even see the
boy in front of him. Arriving at Miss Slessor's beach in the late
afternoon he walked the two or three miles to the hut. " Ma "
came tottering out to welcome him in her night-dress. " What is
this ? " he said sternly. " Away to your bed at once " ; and she
obeyed. " What a Salvation Army lassie is to the Church at
home," he said, " so is Miss Slessor to the Mission. She does a
certain kind of work in a certain kind of way. I would not com-
mend her as a pattern to others, but she has saved lives as no other
man or woman could have dared to do. Had a man attempted
to do what she had done during the recent riot he would have had
his throat cut."

The night the Doctor returned, tired out, to Creek Town,

IN CALABAR 265

Mr. Bishop, the printer, roused him at 2.30 a.m. with the report
which had come down from the teacher at Ikorofiong that Mr.
Cruickshank was ill with fever and dysentery. He rose and dressed,
while Bishop made a cup of tea, roused the Kroo boys, and got out
the boat. At 4 a.m. he was off, crying " Good-bye " to Bishop —
" a splendid fellow," who had his warm regard. In the darkness
Bishop waved farewell with his lantern. Ere the Doctor got back
he was dead — the seventh death in eighteen months.

When the Doctor reached Ikorofiong he walked into his cousin's
bedroom, to find him a mere bag of bones. " Wha sent ye ? "
the patient said, relapsing into Scots in his astonishment. The
Doctor ordered him home.

Despite all disadvantages the two Commissioners managed to
visit every station of the Mission and some of the out -stations.
The general impression left on the Doctor's mind was of the deadly
nature of the climate and the suffering endured by the missionaries,
and especially the ladies. " The United Presbyterian Church," he
said, " little knows what their agents have to bear."

Before leaving he had a talk with Miss Mary Kingsley, the
distinguished traveller, " a nice, cheery lady," who reminded him
of Miss Waterston.

The Commissioners arrived in Scotland again in December,
and submitted their report to the United Presbyterian Board :
it extended to twenty-six pages of closely printed matter, and
exhibited all the Doctor's qualities of thoroughness, sound judg-
ment, and sober vision. The recommendations were adopted and
given effect to, and Calabar secured an Institution which in course
of time exercised a far-reaching influence on the higher development
of the country.

Into the closing months of furlough many matters were crowded
and much business done. Arrangements were made for Amy
remaining behind for her education. Several new missionaries,
who were to prove great gifts to Livingstonia, were appointed — the
Rev. A. G. MacAlpine, Dr. Prentice, and the Rev. James Henderson,
M.A., a distinguished student, who was to make the educational
work at the Institution his special task. To begin the work amongst
the women and girls on a regular basis Miss Stewart, of Aberdeen,
was engaged to travel out with the Doctor and Mrs. Laws. A
new station was also agreed on, at Mwenzo, near Fife, on the
Nyasa-Tanganyika plateau, the most northerly post in the
Mission. Under a friendly arrangement with the Dutch Reformed
Church of South Africa the most southerly stations and historic

266 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Cape Maclear were passed entirely into their hands. Finally the
Doctor was given authority to spend a year searching for a site
for the central Institution, which, the Committee decided, should
bear the name " Livingstonia."

The Doctor left Scotland in May 1894 with the satisfied feeling
of a man who had accomplished good work and laid the foundation
for better in the future.

III. The Friendliness of Rhodes

On the way out he called again on Mr. Rhodes at Cape Town.
That shrewd judge of character had decerned the qualities of the
Nyasaland missionary pioneer, and knew he was a man to be
trusted ; and on this occasion he took him into his confidence,
speaking freely of his ideas and plans for Africa, of the future of
Nyasaland — " I know," he said, " we owe our position there to you
Scotsmen " — and of Johnston's administration.

On his part the Doctor told of the Livingstonia Mission and its
success : how it was civilizing the tribes and providing industrial
education for them ; how the native boys were being eagerly sought
after by the Administration and the planters ; and how his dream
was to establish a great central Institution which would be a kind
of educational and technical University for Central Africa. The
bigness and boldness of the venture appealed to the imagination of
Rhodes, who asked for details.

" I would like a tract of land for the enterprise," continued the
Doctor, " and I speak to you of the matter because I hear Johnston
is fixing a limit for such schemes."

" How much would you like ? " asked Rhodes.

" A hundred square miles," replied the Doctor.

Rhodes looked surprised. " Is that not rather large ? " he
suggested.

" I have just been in America, and I find that the Americans
have given even larger grants for educational Institutions, and that
the income from such property now meets much of the expense of
running them."

" Have you found a site ? "

" No, but I think we shall find one about the district near
Mt. Waller. The Institution, of course, would greatly enhance the
value of your territory in that region."

" Well," said Rhodes, " find your site, and when you have
done so, send down your proposals and they will be considered."

THE FRIENDLINESS OF RHODES 267

They then talked about the Cape-to-Cairo telegraph line which
was well under way.

" We shall have the telegraph at Blantyre in six months and at
Victoria Nyanza in two years," remarked Rhodes.

" I am having a telegraph department at the Institution," the
Doctor told him. " Why should you not get the boys we train and
use them in the smaller stations in Central Africa ? "

Rhodes fastened at once on the suggestion. " You will see my
secretary, Dr. Harris, to-morrow ; he will take you to the Post-
master-General and get you supplied with all the instruments,
batteries, and wires you need for the purpose at my expense. Take
them up with you. I will give you £50 per annum towards the
training of telegraphists and other pupils."

He then invited the Doctor to spend the evening at Groote
Schuur, and the Doctor went. A whispered message bade him take
the seat at the right hand of his host at the dinner-table. The talk
was all of African affairs. It was surprising to the Doctor to find
Rhodes sensitive to some criticism, not of great moment, attributing
to him motives he spurned. " They seem to think," he remarked
irritably, " that I am akin to Satan." A wealthy man whose name
came up he bitterly likened to the fool in the parable resolving to
pull down his barns and build greater instead of using his money for
national objects. " Several times that evening," says the Doctor,
" he seemed to forget those about him and began to talk to him-
self, giving revelations of far-reaching projects simmering in his
brain."

Another satisfactory bit of work accomplished at the Cape was
the securing of a recruit for the Mission in the person of Mr. Malcolm
Moffat, a grandson of Dr. Moffat, who was employed in the Colonial
Office, and in due time joined the staff. The Doctor also completed
the arrangements for the transfer of the southern mission stations
to the Dutch.

When he arrived at the Zambezi, after picking up the three boys
from Lovedale whom he had left there in 1891, it was a novel ex-
perience to enter the river by the Chinde mouth, which had been
recently discovered. The easy navigability of this new inlet to the
main stream revolutionized travel to Central Africa.

At Chinde an incident occurred which formed an instructive
commentary on the views of a passenger who had been expressing
himself strongly on the absurdity and folly of educating natives,
holding that they were much better left in their ignorance.
Hundreds of tons of goods were unshipped and placed in the

268 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

sheds of the African Lakes Corporation, as the company was now
called, all the packages being mixed up in the greatest confusion
because the native labourers were unable to read the marks. It
cost the Corporation £5 to assort them out, and would have cost
more had they not had the help of several boys who had received
the rudiments of education.

All the way up the river the Doctor found evidence of the
influence which Livingstonia and Blantyre were exerting. Much
of the transport work was being performed by Tonga lads from
the schools of Bandawe, who were occupying positions of trust as
engineers and pilots of steamers, overseers of carriers, interpreters,
and servants. In the service of the African Lakes Corporation
there were 1400 Tonga, whilst other 4000 were employed by the
planters on the Shire* Highlands. Not all had come under the
teaching of the Mission, much less were they professing Christians,
but they were there as the result of the presence and influence
of the missionaries.

On the Shire* and Lake many of the old pupils were found in
the service of the agents of the Administration. There were some
of these whom the Doctor would not have recommended for positions.
Occasionally he heard a criticism of " mission boys," and invariably
found that those giving cause for the disparagement had been
dismissed, or had left under a cloud, but, knowing the value attached
to a mission training, called themselves "mission boys." "A
lapsed Christian," he said, "is worse than a raw native." Such
cases were to become more frequent as time went on and discipline
became more strict, and the dissatisfaction often expressed by men
unacquainted with mission work was, if they had but known, a
tribute to the efficiency of the methods adopted.

At Zomba the Doctor arranged for the opening of a post office
at Bandawe* and was appointed honorary postmaster.

IV. In Search of a Site

No time was lost in preparing for the expedition in search of a
site for the Institution. Dr. Elmslie, who had been acting for the
Doctor, was naturally anxious to settle down again to the work
which promised so well in Ngoniland ; but the latter would have no
other companion and pressed him to accompany him, not only
as a personal favour but as a duty to the Mission, and he consented.
Great difficulty was experienced in procuring carriers at Bandawe
on account of so many Tonga men being at work elsewhere, and

IN SEARCH OF A SITE 269

those left wishing to prepare their gardens before the rains came.
The Doctor set out short-handed, and nearly all those with him
deserted on the way ; but he had Yuraia, one of the lads he had
taken to Lovedale, now his trustiest lieutenant. A few days'
march brought him to Ekwendeni, the new station occupied by
Dr. Elmslie, where the full number of carriers were engaged.
The Ngoni were more accustomed to carry spears and shields than
head-loads ; and that they readily agreed to act as porters was
a testimony to the hold which had been won over them. Ugeni
— a name denoting " wickedness " — was the chief guide ; he was
a man who had often been out with the northern armies and
knew the whole district to be traversed ; he latterly became an
office-bearer of the Church.

On the morning of 21st September 1894 the caravan left Ekwen-
deni, and marched through a thickly populated region under Yohane,
son of the late Mtwaro, and now ruler of this section of the tribe,
and emerged upon a plain from three to seven miles broad, stretching
north as far as the eye could see. It was covered with trees — all
deciduous except a species of wild fig — and long grass/and through
it ran the Rukuru, the one great river of Nyasaland, haunted by
hippopotami and crocodiles. The bordering hills rose steeply to
lofty heights, some being still crowned with aboriginal forest.

This fertile Henga valley was the original home of the Tumbuka,
but from end to end not a single inhabitant was discerned. There
were abundant signs of former occupation — .village sites amongst
the rank bush, huts in ruins, maize gardens choked with weeds —
but an air of utter desolation and melancholy brooded over the
scene. During one of his journeys, James Stewart had looked
over that extensive plain, and seen it bright with human life and
activity. But the Ngoni swept up from the south, massacring
and plundering, and the remnants of the tribe fled north into the
fastnesses of the Nyika plateau and out towards Karonga. For
five days the missionaries marched through the lonely land, but
without noticing any spot that suggested the possibility of a site.

They came at last across some sturdy independent Poka (" rob-
ber ") people, a section of the Tumbuka tribe, who guided them
up the slopes of a mountain to their homes. On the way some gar-
dens were passed, patches of beans and peas and occasional maize,
protected to prevent the soil being washed away, and at an eleva-
tion of 4500 feet they reached the dwellings, cavities cut in
the hillside, with a few sticks in front, a covering of grass and earth,
and a small opening for a door. Some were simply deep holes dug

270 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

in the earth, and covered over with grass thatch level with the
surface, so that antelopes and other animals browsed unsusp clingly
beside them. When attacked the people said they took refuge
in still more cunningly concealed dens in the higher rock-land.
The ease and fearlessness of the children who ran up and down the
precipitous paths like wild cats astonished not only the Doctors
but the carriers, who were accustomed to feats of agility. Looking
down over the plain it was seen that the forest was now composed
almost entirely of evergreen masuko.

Farther north a tremendous extent of massive mountain-land
came into view. The sandstone cliff of Mt. Waller rose in the east,
on the left was an isolated spur which the guide called Kondowe,
and the wooded slopes beyond swept up into heights that lost
themselves in the clouds. They forded the Rumpi, where it ran
30 yards wide, and climbed the sides of Mt. Waller. No water could
be found where they camped, and a search for it was kept up,
guns and candles in hand, until midnight, when dinner was
served.

Next morning they reached the top of Mt. Waller, which proved
to be a tableland where grew coarse grass and a few trees. The
cliff on the shore side was precipitous in the extreme, yet in the
cavities and crevices of the rocks, in almost inaccessible spots,
were seen the huts of the natives who had been driven there through
terror of the Ngoni. On every hand, in the valleys and on the
hillsides, grass fires were blazing, as was usual at this season, and
the Lake was lost in haze.

From Mt. Waller an escarpment ran round the shore to the
north. Below was Florence Bay, a beautiful sweep of sand and
surf. Westward the ridge sloped down in wood to a pleasant
valley, through which ran the Ruatizi stream, and then rose abruptly
in sandstone cliffs to the small plateau of Kondowe, jutting out like
a shelf from the mountains, which rose behind to a height of 6600
feet. The Doctor looked across to Kondowe' with interest : it
would make a magnificent site for the Institution if the conditions
were favourable ; it seemed a spur connected with the main mass,
and if that were so there would be no difficulty in regard to a water
supply. Descending to the valley the missionaries clambered up
the steep sides of the plateau. On that morning, such a morning
as the one on which the Doctor had entered the Lake, the sun was
partially eclipsed, and as the glory of the dawn in 1875 seemed to
him a symbol of the advent of the Christ -light in Nyasa, so this
event now typified to his mind the coming eclipse of the dark

IN SEARCH OF A SITE 271

superstitions and practices of the natives through the agency of the
Institution.

The plateau was discovered to be approximately 2880 feet above
the Lake, or 4500 feet above sea-level. It was circular in shape,
with an irregular surface, covered with masuko trees and grass
4 feet high, and about a square mile in area. They crossed it
eagerly in the direction of the mountains, but to their intense
disappointment found themselves looking into a valley about
half a mile wide and 350 feet deep, down which a river, the Man-
chewe, was flowing and filling the quiet atmosphere with its music.
The plateau was an island. " Which means," said the Doctor
thoughtfully, " that water would have to be brought from these
mountains by pipes." A more careful examination, however,
revealed two streams, one rising in the centre of the plateau and
another nearer the cliff, and some natives assured them that water
was always obtainable in the dry season. " If that is so," said the
Doctor, " it seems to be our site."

They made for the Manchewe and followed its course, wondering
how it found its way through the high escarpment to the Lake.
The sound of rushing water denoted a waterfall. Suddenly they
were astonished to find themselves on the edge of a wooded precipice,
over which the stream silently curved and then plunged to a depth
of 200 feet. Not many yards farther along there was a similar
waterfall. They found that another stream, the Kazich6, converged
to the spot, and after leaping the fall, joined the Manchewe, their
waters proceeding by a succession of cataracts to the Lake. The
precipice was the abrupt end of an immense gully which cut, angle-
wise, into the side of the mountains, and they looked down, as from
the sky, through a widening gorge, upon the plain far below and
beyond, to the shining Lake. Scrambling down the cliff they saw,
from beneath, the two waterfalls descending between rock and vivid
vegetation in filmy threads and sheets that sparkled and flashed in
the sunlight. The Doctor thought he had never witnessed a more
beautiful scene.

Tragedy was there as everywhere in the land. Dark faces
peered from amongst the foliage that veiled the perpendicular
rocks ; children could be seen on the edge of cliffs that fell sheer
for hundreds of feet ; in every crevice and cranny of the jungle-
rocks were perched, like the nests of eagles, the huts and grain-
stores of the people, the remnants of the Tumbuka tribe from the
Henga valley. Determined to visit their dwellings the Doctors
again ascended, and then cautiously made their way down, by a

272 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

steep and perilous track, often only a sloping foot in width, where a
careless step would have precipitated them into the chasm below.
Stockades of poles often barred their way, and through narrow
openings they crept on hands and feet. Dr. Elmslie photographed
his companion peering through one of these. " Dr. Laws looking
for a site for the Institution ! " he exclaimed. " Well," retorted the
Doctor, " could I be in a better attitude than on my knees ? "
They were amazed to find the people living even behind the falling
water, in caves which were mere longitudinal slits in the sandstone
strata.

They appeased the fears of the wretched fugitives, and next
morning a number came up to a little service which the Doctor held
with the Ngoni followers ; but it was with marked apprehension
that they sat down beside the men who had harried them so cruelly.
When the Ngoni started to sing a hymn it sounded so like a war-
chant to the nervous visitors, that, starting up, they disappeared in
a moment into the labyrinth of rock and vegetation.

From the falls the Doctors continued down the rugged sides of
the mountain towards the Lake, noticing many fine timber trees
in the gorges and glens and on the plain, but finding also widespread
evidence of the ravages resulting from the crude methods of the
natives, large tracts of forest having been consumed for garden
ground.

V. Attacked by Lions

A year previously rinderpest had swept through the district and
decimated the antelopes, buffaloes, and other game in the district,
and food was scarce for the carnivora, which had begun to prey
upon human-kind. The travellers found the huts on the plain
covered with thorns or erected on stilts as a protection against the
lions, which were reported numerous and fierce. Towards sunset
they reached what is now called Lion Point, and as a cold wind was
blowing up the Lake from the south-east the carriers decided to
camp on the warm sands behind the shelter of a rock. Dr. Elmslie,
who was in charge of the arrangements, finding the sand too soft
to hold the tent-pegs, moved fifty yards inland to a slight eminence
— the tent, it may be stated, was the gift of a girls' class in Greenock,
which Laws had brought out with him. There was a good deal
of tall grass about, and this was burned in case any of the bush
fires which were blazing in the neighbourhood should reach them
during the night. There was, however, much grass and scrub left

ATTACKED BY LIONS 273

between the tent and sands. Lion tracks were noticed, but it was
thought the fires would keep them off.

When Yuraia came into camp from shooting guinea-fowl and
saw the tent set up he said to Dr. Laws, " I am not liking this
place. Why have you selected it ? "

" Why, it is a beautiful place," replied the Doctor.

" Yes ; but I do not like it : it is separating you from your
people."

" Well, take all the boxes and bales and make yourself com-
fortable on the sands."

" No," Yuraia said ; " I will take only the bales, for they might
be stolen," and with much misgiving he said good-night.

Dr. Laws turned in and left his colleague to change his photo-
graphic plates and take a final look round. Down on the sands
the men were grouped round the fire and one by one fell asleep.
About two o'clock in the star-lit morning a Tonga boy stirred and
woke and rose. At the same moment he saw three lions stalk
past between the sands and the tent, and had a glimpse of a fourth
walking along the edge of the Lake. He shouted, and the others
started up. . The Tonga boy cried to Yuraia, " Fire your gun ! "

" I can't fire when I do not see anything," Yuraia replied.

" They will smell the white men."

" Yes ; I am afraid they will," Yuraia agreed.

At the same moment Dr. Laws was suddenly wakened by a
heavy body crashing against the side of the tent directly over his
head. The canvas ripped open, and a vague, shadowy mass moved
outside. Within a few inches of his face he saw the thumb claw
of a lion cutting the canvas as if it had been tissue-paper. In-
stinctively he thrust up his right elbow and shoved out the canvas
and the claw, and cried out to Elmslie, who was sleeping at the
opposite side. The latter awoke, and, looking across, noticed a
great rent in the tent and through the opening the red reflection
of the grass fires. Seeing, at first, nothing of his colleague he
concluded that he had been dragged off, and sprang up, rushed
to the flap of the tent, put his head out, and shouted in Ngoni,
" Nkaramu ! Nkaramu ! — Lions ! Lions ! "

Yuraia had heard the first shout, and then hearing only the
second he was afraid that Dr. Laws had been killed. Seizing his
gun and thrusting a dozen cartridges into his pocket he scrambled
up the rough slope, the Tonga boy with a fire-stick at his heels, and
the Ngoni carriers following shouting their war-cry. Perceiving
the glow of the fire-stick, Dr. Elmslie opened the tent and admitted
18

274 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

them, and Yuraia was relieved to see his Sing'anga also safe and
sound. It appeared that though they had their guns beside them
all the cartridges were in the boxes outside, and Yuraia reproved
them for their carelessness.

" But, Yuraia," replied the Doctor, " I never thought a lion
would come so quietly ! "

" Ah," said Yuraia, " they are hungry."

The Doctors took their blankets down to the sands to sleep
beside the carriers. There, with the men gathered round, they had
a little service of thanksgiving. Orion was just rising over the
eastern side of the Lake and the Doctor sat and watched it : ever
afterwards the constellation recalled to his mind the encounter
with the lion. Then both men composed themselves to sleep.
" But," says Yuraia, " they did not go to sleep that night. I
slept and woke up and they were talking. I slept and woke up
and they were still talking." In the morning, investigation of the
tracks of the lions showed that they had come back a second time
to the tent.

The journey was continued towards Karonga, and also to
Ngerenj£, about seven miles from the Lake, which the Committee
had made the principal station at the north end, but from those well
acquainted with the Nyasa-Tanganyika plateau it was gathered
that no suitable site would be found farther in that direction, and
it was decided to turn back and re-examine Kondowe. From Deep
Bay, where there was a Government Station, they were accom-
panied by Mr. Swann, the Resident Magistrate, and they went over
the same ground, and also ascended Nyamkowa, the loftiest
mountain dominating Kondowe, from which a magnificent view
of the island plateau, Mt. Waller, and the Lake was obtained.

Descending to Kondowe they had to make their way through
large areas of blazing grass. At several points so fierce was the
heat that it scorched the bare skins of the carriers, and the
missionaries had to place themselves between the men and the
fire. At night, in camp, the Doctor was able to read his watch
by the glare of the light.

Settling on a spot on the edge of the plateau overlooking the
Lake as an observation station, they left most of their loads and
a number of carrier-workers under the charge of Yuraia, with
instructions to build a hut for themselves, and on 17th October, at
dawn, took the road back to their homes.

It was interesting that the first letter which the Doctor opened
on reaching Bandawe" was one from Mr. Alfred Sharpe, who was

ATTACKED BY LIONS 275

acting Commissioner, asking whether the Doctor was yet in a
position to send out trained natives. " I can always find work," he
said, " for office clerks, printers, carpenters, blacksmiths, telegraph
operators, etc., at good wages." This gave the Doctor the oppor-
tunity of reporting progress as to the Institution and of asking
Government assistance in the matter of indenturing lads. Hitherto
the majority of those who passed through his hands would not
remain long enough to become efficient : they left as soon as they
had obtained a smattering of knowledge, and merely brought
discredit on the Mission. The Doctor wished now to introduce the
system of contracts and to have Government help in seeing that
they were carried out in cases where apprentices were refractory.
Mr. Sharpe at once expressed his willingness to enforce such
agreements. He was much interested in the proposed Institution ;
it would, in his opinion, provide the necessary impetus which the
natives required to improve themselves.

The considerations that induced the Doctor to decide on
Kondowe were its healthy situation ; the variety of the altitudes
in the neighbourhood, an important factor in the development of
forestry work which he was resolved to make a feature of the
technical side of the Institution ; its nearness to the Lake, which
meant cheapness of transport ; the abundance of firewood and
timber ; possibilities of water supply for domestic use and irriga-
tion and power for machinery ; good soil with useful minerals ; no
tsetse fly ; and, to begin with, few inhabitants.

In proposing the boundaries of the future estate he bore in
mind the character of the land, most of which was rugged hill-
country, useless save for forestry purposes, the arable tracts being
small and widely scattered. It was necessary to include as many
of these "pockets" as possible, as native settlements would be
required to grow food supplies, while it was imperative to take in
the watersheds of the streams which would provide the Station with
water and power. On the first rough plan he drew out, therefore,
the area extended to about 136 square miles. In view of the im-
portance of the matter he felt that, despite the request of Mr.
Rhodes, the Livingstonia Committee themselves should make the
formal application for the territory, and this he asked them to do.

Ngerenje had not impressed him as a station. Karonga was
the key-spot at the north end : there the natives were rapidly
throwing off their superstitions and tribal restraints and were
plunging into licence and immorality. He foresaw — what came
about — that it would be one of those centres which circumstances

276 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

might make a " hell upon earth," and that therefore the main
strength of the Mission in the district should be centred there and
not at Ngerenje. With the Mwenzo station on the plateau the
northern boundary of the mission work would be secure. The
suggestion was agreed to by the Committee.

VI. The Island Plateau

A few weeks later, on 7th November 1894, the Doctor, Mrs.
Laws, Mr. Murray the carpenter, and a few Tonga workers left
Bandawe in the I lata to begin the Institution. By the 10th, the
cattle, sheep, and goats and all the goods were landed on the strip
of sandy beach, and that afternoon the Doctor and Mrs. Laws
clambered up the precipitous wooded hills to the plateau. Yuraia
had worked well and had shown powers of organization with which
even the Doctor had not credited him. He had engaged local men
and women, built a small house for the missionaries, and collected
a large quantity of reeds, grass, timber, and other building material.
The Doctor had a shed erected, and then came the task of dragging
up the goods from the shore through the tangle of rock and jungle
on the steep hillsides. It was so stiff a bit of work that the Tonga
carriers rebelled and many of them fled. The difficulty was over-
come by the Doctor paying them 3 yards of calico per fortnight
instead of two.

Kondowe had a cool, crisp climate, akin to that of Blantyre,
but as it was above the region of cloud it was sometimes enveloped
in mist, and a fire had to be lit and kept burning, native fashion,
in the middle of the little hut. Both the Doctor and Mrs. Laws
experienced a vigour and energy to which they were strangers
at Bandawe. Some rain-showers swept the atmosphere clear of
the " smokes," and they looked down upon the great Lake stretching
north and south with only the square bulk of Mt. Waller blocking
the view for a little in front ; and far beyond, 50 miles or more, the
dim outline of mountains in Portuguese East Africa, looking like a
low elevation but in reality 8000 to 10,000 feet high. Behind, to
the westward, towered the green heights of the Nyika hills, over
2000 feet above the plateau.

But the Doctor had little time to admire the wonderful scenery
or watch the exquisite effects of light and shade on the Lake and
hills. Mr. Moffat was daily expected, and the rains were near,
and a sun-dried brick house with three rooms and storage had to
be constructed. The old tasks of clay-carrying, tree-cutting, road-

THE ISLAND PLATEAU 277

constructing, and planting went on from dawn till sundown, varied
by exploratory tours in the vicinity to spy out timber, collect rock
specimens — which were dispatched to Scotland to ascertain their
relative value for building purposes — and to make friends with the
people. Daily worship was held with the workers and services on
Sunday. Four members from Bandawe formed the nucleus of the
future Church.

There were the usual trials and disappointments. After two
months' strenuous labour the new house was practically complete.
One calm moonlight night the Doctor, in happy mood, was looking
at it and feeling satisfied with the progress made. Next day the
building was in ruins, a tornado having caught it in its most vulner-
able part. Instead of re-erecting it he went on with the kitchen,
and in this he and Mrs. Laws dwelt. It was damp, uncomfortable,
and unhealthy, but they occupied it right through the rainy season.
A wattle-and-daub workshop and small schoolroom were next con-
structed, and technical training on a simple scale and elementary
school teaching begun, while evening classes were held for the
workers. For a time, when he was without a carpenter, the Doctor
was in the workshop, and made it his theological classroom,
teaching Charles Domingo while busy at the bench. Attention
was also given to the agricultural department, which the Doctor
regarded as an essential factor in the general scheme of the Mission.
The cattle and sheep throve, but 70 per cent, of the goats died.
Some wheat seed from Tanganyika came up, but was eaten by
locusts. European vegetables did well. Pine trees, the eucalyptus,
and the laburnum flourished ; two mahogany trees from Kew
Gardens made good progress.

The Poka cave-folk, not yet sure of their neighbours, peered
out on the strange scenes about them in amazement. It was
months ere they could trust themselves to venture freely into the
open, and then the children, whose curiosity was never able to
overcome their timidity, were gradually coaxed into friendly
relations, and by and by were taken in hand by Mrs. Laws and
formed into a class.

By the autumn of 1895, Mr. Henderson having joined the staff,
the Station was sufficiently advanced to warrant work being organ-
ized on a better basis. All the industrial pupils were transferred
from Bandawe along with the plant and other material. It was a
herculean task to drag the heavy loads up an acclivity which was like
Salisbury Crags in its steepness and Ben Nevis in its height, and it
was little wonder that the carriers again declined " tenga tenga "

278 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

toil of such a nature and cleared off. It was the Ngoni who came
to the Doctor's aid, as they did in the other tasks about the Station.
A remarkable sight it was to see them busy levelling roads for the
people they used to chase, as one said, like " buck buck," bringing
their children to school, and poring over Mark's Gospel round their
camp fires. " If," said the Doctor, " you want a proof of the
power of the Gospel, there it is."

Some of the pupils were girls from Bandawe and Ngoniland,
including wives of teachers sent for instruction. " This is a begin-
ning," the Doctor wrote ; " the longer I live the stronger is my
conviction of the necessity of a good Christian training for the girls,
in whose hands to a large extent will lie the future of the Church
in this land." He found that the steady discipline of the school
was very trying to girls accustomed to the easy, happy-go-lucky
existence in the villages, and though he did not undervalue literary
training for them, he was more concerned that they should acquire
the qualities of good home-makers. From them he did not expect
such quick results as from the boys : it would, he believed, be the
second or third generation of women in the mass that would exhibit
the character he desired to see.

The progress in every branch of work went on so rapidly that
the numbers of those seeking the advantages of the Institution
became a source of embarrassment. One day, for instance, a
band of twenty-one boys arrived from places from 10 to 15 miles
away, pleading to be taken in as pupils, and promising to remain
three or more years if required. The Doctor chose five, and told
the others that there was no room for them, but it was with a sore
heart that he saw the dejected lads move slowly away. Any
expectation of vacancies in the second session was disappointed,
for every one of the pupils turned up again as eager as before.

The activities of the Station greatly impressed visitors who saw
it for the first time. "The feature that struck me most," says
one, "was the pains that are taken to produce sincere and ripe
character. There is no pandering to African pride or indolence.
Hard work is the rule of the day, and every one has to take his
turn at manual labour. The ordained missionary will sometimes
be seen on the brickfield, and the native teacher sweeping the roads.
There is no lack of religious services. Every day and all day Christ
is presented to the people. The early morning opens with the
sound of praise, and again, after the midday rest, the workers
meet to hear God's Word read and expounded. On Sabbaths the
scholars scatter to the neighbouring villages to preach ; some of

A FIGHT FOR LAND 279

them start on Saturday, going an entire day's journey on foot.
In this way sometimes not less than forty-four village services
are held in one day." Of the furniture bnng turned out
by the carpenters for the schools, he sa;d no finer work could
be seen in Central Africa.

VII. A Fight for Land

The Doctor was happy in the consciousness that the years of
toil and hardship were yielding their fruit : he had reached the
last goal whither all his training and service had been leading him ;
with wide experience and knowledge and ripe judgment he was
engaged in creating that great centre of mission activity which had
been his dream from the beginning. As day by day his plans grew
and shaped themselves in his mind, he felt his patience and faith
had not been in vain. In vision he saw the plateau laid out in
roads and avenues, a series of workshops, educational buildings, and
dormitories erected, a water supply brought from the mountains
in pipes, a waggon road made to the Lake, a pier and receiving
storehouse built on the shore, and extensive gardens of maize,
millet, cassava, sweet potatoes, peas, and beans flourishing in the
rich soil of the Manchewe Valley.

But he was too cautious to proceed far without being sure of
his right to the land. In reply to his request the Livingstonia
Committee directed him to apply personally to Mr. Rhodes, which
he did through Mr.- Sharpe, who recommended that the grant be
made. The matter passed into the hands of Dr. Jameson, who
committed it to Major Forbes with the remark, " Eighty square
miles is too large : it should be reduced." While Mr. Johnston
was on the Lake he had an interview with Dr. Laws at Deep Bay,
and objected to the extent of his claim. He would not give up
Mt. Waller with its coal, nor did he care for so great a stretch of
the shore line being in the possession of the Mission, and suggested
a number of isolated patches throughout the district. It was a
very unsatisfactory interview, and the Doctor returned from it
with a sense of disappointment and a foreboding of mischief but
with faith undimmed. " I feel assured," he wrote to Lord Overtoun,
" that we are to get the land, or at least as much of it as is good
for us, not because it is the land of the B.S.A. Company, but because
it is God's land, and His time to occupy it has come."

From Major Forbes came a communication to the Doctor on the
supposition that he wanted 80 square miles. " I want not eighty,"

28o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

replied the Doctor, " but one hundred and fifty or even more."
In the course of a long reply, he recited the history of the M'.ssion,
showing what it had accomplished in the way of civilizing the
country and training the natives — a task which had involved the
expenditure of £90,000, and the work of sixty Europeans, of whom
thirteen had died at their posts — and also what was intended to be
achieved in the future by the establishment of an educational and
technical institution. The acquirement of the land, he said,
would not put a penny into his own pocket or into the pocket
of the Livingstonia Committee : it was intended entirely for the
social and economic advancement of the native. Much of the
territory was useless : only 10 square miles at the outside were fit
for European farming. As regards the Lake shore, he was willing
to compromise, but he wished at least 1 square mile for the purpose
of a landing-stage and storehouse. "I am not planning for to-
day," he concluded, " I am looking forward to the needs of fifty
years hence. In the course of time we may have from 500 to
1000 pupils and workers. We need arable land to supply food for
these, and we need water-power for our machinery and electrical
appliances."

To Mr. Thomas Binnie, now a frequent correspondent, he wrote :
"It is very humiliating to have to plead for missions on the low
ground of material advancement and benefit resulting from our
work, instead of on the higher ground of spiritual need. Fancy the
Cross of Calvary being valued by the cabbages and potatoes being
grown in the Mission garden, or the Via dolorosa being measured
by roads natives can make or can be taught to make in our neigh-
bourhood ! . . . but there are some people in the world, and I
am afraid also in our churches, whose estimate of mission work
goes no deeper."

In order that negotiations might be facilitated he undertook a
plane table survey of the region with such rude instruments as he
could manufacture. The work was difficult and involved much
cutting through dense bush and hill-climbing. " I cannot do with
bad work and so may be slow. When the long grass is wet by rain,
to get drenched among it is to court fever, and I think I can for a
time yet be of more use to the Mission out of my grave than in it.
At any rate I mean to keep out of it as long as I can and leave it
to others to be heroic."

Sir Harry H. Johnston — as he now was — wrote to the
Foreign Office opposing the Doctor's proposal as unreason-
able.

A FIGHT FOR LAND 281

" He wants not only a very large area to be given to him on the
elevated plateau of the interior . . . but he wants in addition to
obtain the whole of Mt. Waller and its valuable coalfields and all
the coast of Lake Nyasa between the mouth of the Rukuru River
and Deep Bay."

The letter was forwarded to the British South Africa Company,
who fastened on one sentence : " The coalfields are the chief
deposits in British Central Africa, which, properly worked, are
likely to prove of inestimable value to the trade of the protector-
ate," and they, not unnaturally, refused to give away so rich a
territory, unaware, as they were, of the real character of the " coal-
fields." The Doctor had told Sir Harry that he had burned the
coal for a day on the Ilala, but that it was too much mixed with
shale to be really good, whilst Professor Drummond's report had
been that it was of little economic importance. " Poor Sir Harry,"
said the Doctor, when he heard of it. " Does he think he can
thwart God's giving us the land if it is good for us ? Not a bit can
he do so. And if God does not see it to be for our good to get the
land, I for one would not touch it with a pair of tongs." That
coalfields and trade are of more value to a country than an educated
and efficient native population is a view not infrequently met with
in the history of British colonization.

Fortunately, before word of this interference came to the Lake,
Major Forbes had seen the Doctor and gone into the matter, and
not only guaranteed a large grant of land within certain boundaries
for the purpose of the Institution, but offered also smaller areas
for other Stations ; and on the strength of this assurance the Doctor
felt he could proceed with the permanent buildings and a road to
the Lake, though a certain measure of uncertainty still remained.
" I feel sure, however," he said, " that God will give us what is
best, and guide us in all our efforts to secure this."

Now that the site was fixed by the decision of the Mission
Council and the Livingstonia Committee, the Doctor dropped the
name Kondowe, which was really that of a small stream at the
shore, and,was also applied to a settlement farther south, and
adopted Livingstonia, the designation bestowed by the Committee,
and recognized by the Government, which established a post office
at the Station with that title. The Committee further placed on
record their wish that the whole Mission should be known as " The
Livingstonia Mission." How difficult it is to get rid of a name
once given is shown by the fact that on the Lake and amongst the
missionaries the Station is still often termed Kondowe\ It is

282 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

necessary to keep to the word " Livingstonia," however, for the
name otherwise has no place on this map.

VIII. End of the Slavers

The Commissioner was carrying out the policy of Rhodes and
systematically crushing the slavers and recalcitrant Chiefs. It
was a tedious, perilous, and costly task, one which required fore-
thought, courage, and determination ; but it had to be done, and the
officers who did it showed the best qualities of British pluck and
endurance. Mlozi was one of the last to be dealt with. He had
continued his raiding expeditions, threatened Mwenzo, where
Dr. Cross was missionary, and declared his intention of clearing
the country of the British. " They have closed my route to the
coast," he said. " Very well, I will close their road to Tanganyika.' '
Johnston attacked his stockade, one of immense strength, with
trained forces and artillery, and defeated him with much slaughter.
Dr. Cross spoke of the last scene with horror. Mlozi was discovered
hiding in an underground chamber and was taken and hanged, amidst
the rejoicings of the natives. Not long afterwards, paying a visit
to Mwenzo, Dr. Laws saw the traces of what had been a ghastly
business. On his return he brought the spoils he loved in the
shape of twenty-one pupils who included three boys released from
a captured slave gang. The little fellows started to march out
bravely with the rest, but the 6o-mile journey proved too much
for their powers of endurance, and they had at last to be carried
in improvised hammocks.

The gradual imposition of British administration round the Lake
brought a new era of peace and security. The officials with whom
the Doctor came into contact helped him in every way in their
power, and with not a few he carried on a friendly and even
intimate correspondence. It was interesting for him to note that
their policy was practically that adopted by the missionaries in the
early years. As magistrates they did not interfere in the course
of native law, though they forbade the poison ordeal or other
barbarous punishment ; and in districts where no native authority
existed they had power to inflict flogging up to twelve lashes, to
fine to an amount not exceeding £5, and to imprison for a period
not exceeding six months.

The situation was not without its difficulties, and occasionally
incidents occurred which caused not a little irritation to those who
had been working long among the people. The Doctor took these

END OF THE SLAVERS 283

matters philosophically, and gave some wise advice to his colleagues.
" The transition stage," he said, " is always a trying time in the
history of uncivilized peoples, but by confining ourselves to our own
special work we can best help the natives and the Government.
Keep neutral in political matters so far as your actions are concerned,
however personal leanings may go. Righteousness is the only
politics for the missionary."

He did not believe in badgering the Administration about trifles,
and he had great sympathy with Mr. Johnston and his assistant,
Mr. Sharpe, in their heavy task, and sought to help them as he was
able. Johnston he defended, as he had done Dr. Stewart, against
criticism at home. What, however, he set his face sternly against
was immorality on the part of Europeans. This became so notice-
able that the Mission Council placed on record the fact that the
work was seriously impeded by what was taking place. Character-
istically, however, the Doctor was as compassionate and tender as
Christ Himself in his dealings with individuals who sought his con-
fidence— and there were not a few who came to him as to a confessor
and obtained kind and honest counsel.

What he was concerned about was the intentions of the Govern-
ment with regard to the Northern Ngoni, who were still independent,
untrammelled by treaties, and free from taxation. Johnston had
his eye on the country. There had been some raiding by the
Southern Ngoni under the successor of Chikusi which required the
intervention of the Government, and it seemed to the authorities
at Zomba that conditions in the country would never be satisfactory
until all the tribes were subject to them. The Commissioner hinted
to the missionaries that it might be wise for them to assist him in
roping in the Northern Ngoni, but the Doctor was neither to be
intimidated nor bribed ; he would not move before he was abso-
lutely sure of his ground. " The whole secret of transition," he
said, " lies in the words, ' hasten slowly.' The Ngoni are bowing
to a moral and spiritual force, and not to a material, and given time
all will be well."

When the shore people were gazetted for taxation he knew that
it would not be long before the Ngoni would be dealt with. He
heard, indeed, that Johnston had prepared plans for their conquest
and was coming up to inspect the situation, and he feared that the
military would prefer a fight to a process of pacific development.
Mentioning his misgivings to Dr. Stewart, he said, " For the military
element in the country a fight with the Ngoni might help towards a
C.M.G. or C.B. without reference to whether it could have been

S\

284 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

avoided or not. But the work of the Mission has broken the back
of the Ngoni power for evil and fighting, and I should like to see
them brought peacefully under British rule for their own sakes."
And to his friend Mr. Swann, the Magistrate at Deep Bay, he wrote :
" We may not get the credit for it, but there is a preparation
for British rule going on in Ngoniland which may yet make it
the easiest transfer of power in British Central Africa. Much,
however, will depend on the tact with which this is managed, and
the consideration that is shown to savage dignity in letting it
down as softly as possible when the time comes." Fighting,
he felt assured, would come only through bungling on the part
of the Administration. Meanwhile, Dr. Elmslie and the other
missionaries were working hard to prepare the mind of the people
for the coming change, and spreading the idea that it would be
beneficial for them to elect Queen Victoria as their Chief.

From one cause and another the situation grew somewhat
strained — Dr. Elmslie at one time thought war inevitable — but
Sir Harry Johnston went home, and was succeeded by Mr. Sharpe,
whom the missionaries trusted to a much greater degree. They no
longer feared underground policies and a resort to force until moral
agencies had received a fair trial.

Sir Harry reported very favourably of the work of the Mission,
which, he said, had practically saved the Tonga race from extinction.
It stood first, he also stated, as regarded the value of its contribu-
tions to the knowledge of African languages. Dr. Laws was, in
his opinion, the greatest man who had yet appeared in Nyasaland —
not, perhaps, a very high compliment, since the total white popula-
tion was only about 200.

The new Commissioner and the Doctor were old friends, and each
sought to assist the other in advancing the interests of the country.
Sharpe, the Doctor knew, was doing his best for the native, and
was not slow in acknowledging it. " This is a great comfort and
help to me," said Mr. Sharpe. " It is so seldom that those engaged
in mission work really believe and understand that the civil
authorities have nothing but the best intentions in what they do."

IX. The Doctor as Editor

The Station presented a scene of ordered activity without any
of the interruptions and excitements of former years. From dawn
to dark — 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. — the classes and work went on with a
punctuality which never failed. The clang of a bell denoted the

THE DOCTOR AS EDITOR 285

hours and called the people to meeting and service. This bell was
a portion of the boiler of the Bala, the one which had done its part
in bringing the steamer into the Lake in 1875.

It was as if the Doctor had passed out of Old Testament times
into those of the New. For that reason, however, conditions, if less
outwardly simple, were becoming more difficult. Problems were
more advanced, more complex, new aspects of African character
were being disclosed, the reaction of civilized thought and habit
was producing unexpected developments, and it required more
skill and tact and patience than before to guide the evolution of
the race. A grim fight had to be made for discipline and obedience :
the utmost vigilance had to be exercised to safeguard the pupils
from themselves. There were many reversions to primitive morals,
but the Doctor, though disappointed, sought rather to stress the
other side. He would say to his younger colleagues, depressed by
some sad case among the teachers, " When you know them and
their language better you will get many a surprise at the unsus-
pected depths of their spiritual life, especially among the more
thoughtful older men. And as you know what heathenism is, in
its horrible depravity and wickedness, you will be able to appreciate
the gulf that separates the Christians from their past, and see that
their lives often put the Christians of our land to shame."

The Station was a perfect Babel : fifteen different languages
were represented, but the African is a born linguist, and the boys
and girls, borrowing words from each other's tongue, mixed them
with Chinyanja, which was generally understood, and so created
a sort of lingua franca of their own. In some sentences heard
spoken each word belonged to a separate language. There was no
tribal jealousy among the pupils ; nor did they show any objection
to the extraordinary disparity of ages in the classes, where little
children worked alongside grown youths. The thirst for learning
was unquenchable : Mr. Henderson said it could hardly anywhere
be surpassed. Nor did the enthusiasm wane : it went on in-
creasing. It was the rapid growth of opening minds under favour-
able conditions : what fruit the process would yield was the secret
of the future. Progress among the girls continued to be slower ;
in all matters they exhibited a more conservative spirit, and were
shyer to express any inward change.

A wave of spiritual aspiration swept over Bandawe district,
where the Rev. A. G. MacAlpine was throwing himself enthusiasti-
cally into the work. The people flocked to the services, as many
as 1500 being present at each, and men, women, boys, and girls

286 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

came privately, saying, " I want to follow Jesus." What pleased
the Doctor most was the fact that the older women who used to
be his worst enemies were crowding to the classes eager to learn.
He was sorry to hear of the death of Chikoko, " the only man of
any importance among the Tonga whom I looked upon as a real
friend. He was affected by the Gospel, and mwave got its death-
blow in the district through him."

In Ngoniland a similar movement was strongest on the intel-
lectual side, the " karata," or reading and writing, fever having taken
possession of both old and young, but it was not long ere deeper
forces were at work. At this time, too, a new agent appeared on
the field to add greatly to the strength of the staff. " Here,"
wrote the Doctor to a colleague, " is a piece of good news. A
friend of Livingstonia [Dr. Loudon] has offered a salary for a mis-
sionary, and Mr. Fraser, a student, has been appointed." Mr. Donald
Fraser was one of the pioneers of the Student Volunteer Missionary
Movement. His winning personality and gift of speech had made
him a power in the Universities and Colleges of Britain and the
Continent, and on his way out to Livingstonia he made a tour of
the South African colleges and high schools, where his influence
was also remarkably effective in creating interest in missions.
On seeing him the Doctor's verdict was, "A man of marked spiritual
power and wide experience, with whom I shall get on well. ... I
wonder whether after the excitement and movement of his previous
work he will find it a strain to adapt himself to the comparatively
uneventful and plodding work of Ngoniland." The years gave the
answer, and proved that in the organizing of work amongst a
primitive and isolated people and in the bringing of them to Christ
he was as successful as he had been in dealing with advanced and
critical University youth.1

On the industrial side rapid developments were going on. The
small printing-press had long ceased to meet the orders which
flowed in from every quarter, and the Doctor was relieved when
a new large cylinder machine he had arranged for arrived. The
problem was how to convey it to the Station. Mr. Murray, the
carpenter, constructed three wooden sledges on which the heavy
castings were securely fastened, and fifty men being attached to
each, they were dragged up the cliff by the native path, some of
the deeper gullies being filled in for the occasion. Difficulties
were not surmounted when the machine was ready. Only those

1 His Winning a Primitive People should be consulted for the background
of native life with all its colour and movement.

THE DOCTOR AS EDITOR 287

who have had experience of glycerine rollers in a tropical climate
know the trouble of securing good impressions in letterpress
work.

With the installation of the press the Doctor was able to realize
his dream of reviving the old Aurora in a form worthy of the Mission.
Writing of the scheme to Mr. Thin, he said : " I do not know that
I have many of the qualifications of a journalist in me, but, as in
other matters, I may be a pioneer of the way for a better in the
future. I have no liking for philippics, or ambition to write much,
but I trust a calm, moderate statement of fact and deduction may
be of service. We do want some means of appeal to public opinion,
and also to educate it on some matters of vital importance to the
community." In February 1897 he issued the first two-monthly
number of Aurora : a Journal of Missionary News and Christian
Work, containing eight large pages printed in clear type, and giving
a fair quantity of local intelligence and statistics, and several general
articles. In his editorial foreword the Doctor stated that the aim
of the magazine was the Glory of God. " We would rather not
begin it, or see it come to a speedy end, than that this aim should
be lost sight of in a single issue." Outlining its wide scope, he
added : " With politics as party politics we do not profess to deal.
From politics, as righteousness or the lack of it, no man as a citizen
of a country can stand aloof or be blameless." While discarding
political bias, therefore, he intimated that he had no intention of
keeping silent on matters of injustice or oppression. In the sub-
sequent numbers one searches in vain for any reference to the
Doctor or his particular work ; as editor he blue-pencilled all
complimentary remarks in contributions submitted to him. " We
value your goodwill," he would write, " but feel it had better stand
as we put it." A friend remarked to him, "It is like drawing
your teeth to get you to say anything of yourself."

He soon discovered that he had added a heavy task to his
already overburdened life. The work led to a greatly increased
correspondence, for he wrote all the missionary agencies in Central
Africa, English and foreign, offering space for news of their
activities ; while the handling of contributions and the correct-
ing of proofs involved far more attention and trouble than he had
anticipated. The Aurora at once took a high place in missionary
periodical literature, and performed a useful service in making the
life and work of the Mission better known to its supporters at home
and abroad. Its title was later changed to The Livingstonia News.

Other departments, under competent European management,

288 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

kept in line with the general advance. The carpenter's shop had
always more orders than it could turn out ; the brickmaking staff
were manufacturing hundreds of thousands of bricks, several of
the native moulders being able to turn out iooo in nine hours ; the
builders were erecting classrooms, cottages, stores, and other build-
ings; the cultivations were supplying large quantities of wheat,
maize, vegetables, and fruit, 2000 young coffee plants were planted,
and there was now 194 head of cattle, some of which were used
in ploughing and harrowing.

At the industrial exhibition, a feature of the year, there was a
large display of articles in the various sections, the best exhibits
being those of pottery and basket and iron work. The event was
combined with athletic sports, in which Institution training usually
won against undisciplined village muscle.

X. Nature's Cruelty

The medical work was increasing in a larger ratio than in other
departments : for 1897 the cases numbered 9917, of which 7392
were surgical. Without proper accommodation it was difficult to
deal adequately with these, and the Doctor was longing for a
well-equipped hospital. The first death amongst the Europeans
occurred, that of a little child, the year-old daughter of Mrs. Thom-
son, wife of the printer. The Doctor fought for her life with all
the skill he possessed, but had at last to leave her in the arms of
her mother, who held her till she died. The Doctor was tired out ;
he had been working at high pressure for weeks, and as he turned
away sadly from the scene he wished he had never been a doctor
to be trusted with such a life and fail. He was up before sunrise
to make the coffin himself for the delicate morsel of humanity,
" God's seed corn," whose death had consecrated new Livingstonia.
Very many of the patients brought to the Station suffered from
maulings by wild animals. It is the creed of the missionary that
the redemption of the world includes not only the human soul
but the earth in all its aspects, and that Christ's work will not be
complete until in every part of His dominion the wilderness is
glad and the desert blossoms as the rose. The subjugation of the
one follows on the conquest of the other. With civilized conditions
Nature seems to grow less ruthless and cruel : wild beasts retreat
into remoter haunts, smaller pests gradually die off ; Nature be-
comes kindLer and brighter. But at first there is a period of stress
and struggle which gives much practice to the medical man.

The Doctor beginning a Village School

f — ""

_^^fl

4 Vtt .$ ^■Mgtl -JfeifrBP

1 II ,' /.

*^fc" r f 0<Mi

The School in being: Dr. Laws in the Distance

Above the Clouds : View from Livingstonia

Rev. A. G. MacAlpine, Rev. Dr. Elmslie, Rev. Dr. Laws
Yesaya, Hezekiah, Jonathan (p. 347)

The Doctor working at his Office Desk

NATURE'S CRUELTY 289

Lions continued to be common prowlers in the neighbourhood ;
they could be heard from the houses roaring in the wood or across
the valley. Four were seen at one time hunting through the
grass-land at midday, and one was passed reclining with his head
on his paws on the hills as if meditating on the human activity
going on below. The natives possessed no weapons save their
spears, and these were of little use either to attack the beasts or
to defend themselves. One night five women and a child were
sleeping in a hut when a Hon sprang upon the roof, broke through
the thatch, and killed two of the women and the child. The others
fled into another hut, where a man stood with a spear. The lion
followed them, but was received with a spear-thrust and was driven
off. The other hut caught fire, and the three dead bodies were
reduced to ashes.

Not long afterwards a lion attacked a hut near the falls. Inside
were two women and a girl, who, realizing that the creature was
making its way through, seized their chance and fled by the door-
way. The lion bounded after them and killed them one by one,
and then feasted on the bodies. Next morning a woman left
her hut to find out what the noise in the night had been, and was
also attacked and killed. The Doctor supplied strychnine to the
natives, who used some meat as a bait ; it was taken and vomited,
but they were afraid to follow up the spoor. Mr. Henderson, with
some of the workers, hunted down the beast, which, at bay, turned
and charged. It was a critical moment. Mr. Henderson was
kneeling. The lion- leaped towards him, but at the third bound
the cool eye and steady hand did their work, and it fell over with
a bullet in its forehead. The Doctor complimented Henderson on
his splendid shot. " It was a Higher Hand," was the reply.

Near Deep Bay a family of lions attacked a man, woman, and
boy : the woman was killed ; the boy escaped ; the man, with his
back to a tree, kept two of the lions at bay, wounding one, then,
badly clawed, managed to climb into the branches. He saw the
woman being devoured. It was four days ere he could steal away
from the tree and drag himself to Deep Bay.

Leopards stalked smaller prey ; during the first year they
killed no fewer than 200 fowls, 8 dogs, and 13 cats belonging to
the Station. They were very bold, and made frequent attempts
to break into the houses ; one smashed a window and some orna-
ments in a room next to that in which Mrs. Laws was sitting.

A greater scourge even than lions or leopards were the locusts,
immense clouds of which flew over the district, darkening the
19

290 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

atmosphere like an eclipse. One swarm took seven days to pass
over Livingstonia. Millions were drowned in the Lake, the shore
of which was strewn with their bodies. During the dry season,
when the pastures were burnt and the gardens bare, they did little
damage, but when the crops were green they left nothing to reap.
In 1897 twenty-five acres of the early maize and other products
were destroyed, and food became scarce. As the pupils and
apprentices in the Institution required a total ration of 400 lb.
per day, it became a matter of difficulty to feed them, and, although
supplies were brought from Bandawe and elsewhere by steamer, the
session had to be shortened and the boys and girls sent to their homes.

Another pest as annoying as any at this time was the jigger,
which had made its way from the west coast ; it burrowed beneath
the skin and caused abscesses. On one occasion the Doctor took
out twelve from his toes, and on another, after being crippled for
a time, the sore was followed by erysipelas, which confined him to
his bed for a month. In the school it was necessary to have " jigger
parades."

But perhaps the worst, because so silent, secret, and omnipresent,
was the white ant. It had been the bane of the missionaries at
Cape Maclear and Bandawe, and proved no less aggravating at
Livingstonia. " The tsetse fly, the white ant, and the malarial
germ, whatever it is, are the greatest physical hindrances to the
advancement of this portion of Africa," wrote the Doctor. " The
ravages of the white ants are heart-breaking."

Earthquakes were frequently experienced ; at the first shock
the people, who believed the Deity was calling upon them, would
rush out into the open and cry, " We are all here ! " Thunderstorms
were common during the rainy season, trees being often struck by
lightning. Tornadoes swept across the plateau. Once the wind
was accompanied by intense cold, hailstones of clear ice the size of
marbles falling thickly the while. Several of the buildings were
damaged, and the printing office was levelled to the ground. The
visitation would sometimes take the form of an isolated whirlwind
— a tall black column moving through a breathless atmosphere and
licking up everything in its path.

XL Work and Faith

The plateau was rapidly changing its character : spacious roads
were being cut through the masuko woods, opening up magnificent
vistas towards the distant landscape, and were being lined by

WORK AND FAITH 291

Mlanje cedars from the Shir6 Highlands. Thousands of these
trees were also being planted on the hillsides, where the Doctor
was already planning his waterworks. " Within 8 miles of where I
write," says a letter at this time, " there is water-power enough
to light Glasgow, and within 4 miles a river bigger than the Clyde
tumbling down 2000 feet or so in 2 miles." He was also obtaining
sstimates for a sawmill and threshing mill, electric motors, turbines
and other plant, and arranging for the sites and the buildings.
But for all this work money was required, and he did not forget
the ordinary needs of the stations as well as the necessity for
extension. The area of operations and the opportunities for
service were opening up in an incredible way all over the vast
region occupied by the Mission. The forlorn west was appealing
for teachers and evangelists. Deputations of old men came, saying
the tribes there were wanting to hear the good news and to learn.
Bandawe" people were eager to help, and teachers were sent forward
to Kasungu, a point touched by Dr. Livingstone, and then Dr.
Prentice opened a station there, which connected the Mission with
the Dutch field in the south.

This had- its bearing on the Kota Kota question, which had
not yet been settled. Bishop Maples had announced his intention
of working amongst the Swahilis there. The Doctor's dream was a
continuous chain of Livingstonia stations along the Lake, and it
was only the lack of agents that prevented the occupation of Kota
Kota. Ordinarily he objected to overlapping, which merely em-
phasized denominational differences before the natives, and held
that mutual consideration and arrangement should rule, but the
Universities Mission was better fitted than any society to work
amongst the Mohammedans on account of its long experience. It
was uphill work, and the agents' were having a hard fight amongst
the Yaos on the eastern side of the Lake. And if the Livingstonia
Committee were unable to undertake the task at Kota Kota, he
could only rejoice that it was to be done by others. " Saturate
the people with the Word of God, and you will stop both Moham-
medanism and Roman Catholicism."

Bishop Maples was drowned in the Lake, and Bishop Hine,
his successor, called on him to discuss the matter. It was sug-
gested that the Anglicans might possibly advance as far west as
Kasungu, a plan which the Doctor strongly opposed. " But,"
said Mr. Anster, who was with the Bishop, " if we cannot work west
we shall be rather boxed in." " Why did you go into the box ? "
inquired the Doctor, a retort which" the Bishop greatly enjoyed.

292 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Ultimately the Universities Mission agreed to keep to the
Mohammedan enclave of Kota Kota, and the occupation of
Kasungu settled the matter. Dr. Laws admired the Universities
men, and, through all the negotiations and others that followed,
saw no reason why he should break his friendship with them.
They, on their part, warmly reciprocated his feeling, and sent to
the Livingstonia Committee a letter appreciative of his kindness,
accompanied by a donation of £50 for the Mission.

With all his determination to advance, the Doctor would not
outrun his resources. He had a strong objection to incur debt, and
declined to begin any work until he saw a certain amount subscribed.
It was not lack of faith, but faith in the Tightness and dignity of an
unhampered conscience. Both he and his colleagues took the only
possible course. They met and agreed to " ask £10,000 from God for
1899-1900, and that He would send out the agents He was preparing
for the work." Immediately afterwards the Doctor was cheered by
news that the Committee were endeavouring to provide the essential
money and material. " God," he said, " will supply the still greater
needs. So let us pray on."

It has to be borne in mind that the Livingstonia Committee was
still, in a manner, outside the Free Church ; it continued to raise
its income independently, nothing whatever being received from the
general fund of the Foreign Mission Committee. The Mission had
a wider basis than any denominational enterprise, and was even
supported by many outside the Churches, but the bulk of the money
— something like £8000 a year — was contributed in small amounts
and gathered in by special congregational committees and collectors
throughout Scotland and England. It was this fine disinterested
service, added to the voluntary work of the secretary and other
officials, that made the Mission possible and carried it on from
success to success. Few mission enterprises have been founded and
sustained so much on simple love and loyalty and devotion.

The Doctor, however, realized that no matter how generous the
response of the homeland was in regard to workers and means, it
could never hope to cope with the needs of any section of Africa.
God worked through His people in Britain, but only until local
disciples were ready to carry on. " Our policy should be this, to
have as many native agents as we can get, and have these as well
trained as possible ; then steadily spread them out over the country.
These should have the guidance and supervision of Europeans, the
best trained ordained and medical men we can get. As the out-
come of my experience and practice and study of other mission

A CONTRAST IN NGONILAND 293

fields this is the most effective and least expensive line of mission
policy."

The amount of work requiring to be done began to assume
crushing proportions, and it was not surprising that he had little
time to spare for office duties. The situation was not quite under-
stood in Scotland, and when letter after letter came, referring to
details of accounts and other minor business matters, he wrote
back : "I have no doubt you will say, ' You are master, make
things stand aside and get your own work forward.' Certainly I
could do much more personal work and get more personal credit,
but other work would be hindered, and I think I have tried to do
what Jesus would have done, though I confess it has often given
me a sore heart to be misunderstood. Repression of self is a hard
task. . . .If our work flag or fail here we shall lose opportunities
at the other stations, which may never be recovered. Have patience
with me."

The death of his father at this time, following upon that of his
stepmother, was a loss not only to the Doctor but to the Mission, for
none prayed so constantly and fervently for the work. " 'An
Israelite, indeed, in whom is no guile,' is a very good description of my
father's life," wrote the Doctor. " How I ought to thank God for
such an inestimable blessing. What he has been to me I never
can fully realize." It was a singular fact that before the Doctor
left in 1875 Mr. Laws dreaded the separation and wondered how
he could live without the companionship of the son, which had
meant so much to him ; and yet, from the time he fulfilled his vow
and sent him to the end of the earth, his life was never once
shadowed by his absence ; the Doctor seemed to be a more " felt "
companion than if he had been near. " At least," he declared,
" I have never been able to realize that he is far away ; I think the
closer we get to Christ, the closer we get to each other." The two had
a spiritual communion which was independent of space, and both
were happy in the thought that each was praying for the other.
The gentle old saint died proud of his son and prouder of the work
he had accomplished for Christ.

XII. A Contrast in Ngoniland

It was against Nature that the Doctor could toil as he was doing
without breaking down, and an illness which he had alarmed the
Committee, who wrote that, notwithstanding his wish to go on, he
must come home. "It goes sorely against the grain," he said; "too

294 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

much is made of my illness. I have been worse many a time."
Cheering up a colleague who feared heart disease, he wrote : " For
more than fifteen years my own heart has taken to intermitting
with sharp fever, but is usually all right in ordinary circumstances
of work. In fact, heredity or no heredity, I mean to live my four-
score years for the Master and as many more as He has use for me
here below. I advise you strongly to make up your mind to the
same spell of work." Still, he felt that he had lost his old power of
rapid recuperation, and as he wished to investigate the whole ques-
tion of water and electrical supply and installation, he decided to
take furlough.

Meanwhile he was able to be present at a scene which moved
him inexpressibly. Invited by Mr. Fraser to Ngoniland, he pro-
ceeded by steamer to Ruarwe, and travelled to Ekwendeni over the
hills in order to escape the flooded Rumpi and Rukuru, but was
caught instead by floods of rain. The people had already been
gathering for the Communion season, and on Saturday, when the
Doctor walked to the place of service, five thousand faces met his
view. Old fathers of the tribe were there, young men and women,
mothers with infants slung in goatskins on their backs, squatting
in a spacious circle, with reed fences to keep out the chill wind, and
the missionaries and elders sitting on a brick platform shaded by a
roof of grass. As many as 309 adults were baptized, some of them
notable characters in the wild days of raiding, others aged white-
haired women, others again mere boys who would not be refused,
all quiet, earnest, and happy. The Doctor, who, at Mr. Fraser's
request, took part in administering the ordinance, seemed as a man
who dreamed. Only a few miles off these same people had plotted
to murder him and Mr. Stewart and wipe out the Mission. Many of
them looked upon him with awe and fear. Was that the great
father of the Mission, whose coming had changed the old days of
war into peace ? Some doubted it. He had almost become a
legendary figure.

On Sunday the scene was still more moving. There were close
on 7000 persons packed into the enclosure, and in the centre in a
solid block 672 Church members were seated on logs. When Mr.
Fraser spoke there was no excitement, only tense attention, as these
7000 minds followed his slow, distinct, simple words and wrestled
with the thoughts he was trying to impart. Afterwards Tonga
elders, with shy, deprecatory smile, handed the cup to the Ngoni,
who, but a short time before, had been harrying and plundering
them. Then 148 children were baptized. At the after-service

A CONTRAST IN NGONILAND 295

Dr. Laws contrasted the order and peace with the former unrest
and bloodshed, and appealed — not unsuccessfully — on behalf of
the "regions beyond," where no teachers were yet at work. What
pleased him about Mr. Fraser's work was his development of the
itinerating side. " I have for years," he said, " longed for such
freedom mj^self, and, since it is not to be mine, I am glad to see
others doing it. I must be tied down now to definite hours daily
on the Station."

The scenes he had witnessed deepened his anxiety for the
future. " Our very blessings have become our burdens." He
never used words lightly, but he wrote to the Committee that the
" awful responsibility " was weighing him down. " In Ngoniland
alone there are some 1700 catechumens, and in November there
will be 500 or more to examine as candidates for baptism. I
sympathize with Mr. Fraser, who said to me, ' My courage fails me
in meeting the responsibility of the examination of these 500.' "

What he had seen and learnt also convinced him that the time
was ripening for Ngoniland coming under British rule. A fili-
bustering case on the part of a white man, which caused much
trouble to the missionaries, showed the natives that Government
control would not simply mean tax-collection, but that it would
bring them protection from imposition and injury. To this effect
he wrote to Mr. Sharpe, but added : " The Ngoni will not be hurried,
and to attempt to force the pace will be to invite failure. There
are still some of the old fellows left yet, but their power for evil is
waning, and the younger men from the schools are making their
influence felt on the side of righteousness and progress." Mr.
Sharpe was completely at one with the Doctor in the matter.

Before leaving, he completed arrangements for much of the work
he had planned. In view of the rapid approach of the Trans-
Continental Telegraph along the Lake shore, he spent many a
toilsome day exploring the cliffs for the best route for a loop-line
from the Station. It was only a distance of 5 miles, but much of
it was precipitous cliff. A route was fixed on, and this was cleared.
He also made a rough survey for the water supply and turbine,
in order to provide the necessary data for estimates in Scotland.
At the back of his mind was another project, one without which he
believed it would not be easy to carry through the various schemes
and develop the Institution. This was a wagon-road to the Lake.
He was told that he was thinking of the impossible, but the word
was not in his vocabulary, and he scrambled up and down the
cliffs in search of a likely series of gradients. He thought he had

296 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

discovered one which would make the length of the road between
10 and ii miles, and was satisfied.

Before leaving in August 1899, he and Mrs. Laws were enter-
tained by the staff and visitors, sixteen Europeans in all, the
speeches emphasizing the wonderful way in which the Doctor had
been spared to guide and consolidate the work and to establish
the Institution. " Certainly," wrote Mr. Fraser, " Dr. Laws, who
ought to see everything through smoked spectacles, for he has had
a severe and anxious strain, sees a brighter dawning than any of us.
He has seen, too, a longer night in its pitchy darkness." They
were accompanied to the Lake by a bodyguard of some hundreds of
natives, including the boys and girls from the schools. Mrs. Laws
had with her the infant child of one of the L.M.S. missionaries
on Lake Tanganyika. She had been asked to take the little
fellow home, and with her usual kindness undertook the task.

The Doctor on this occasion left a Mission with 5 central stations,
44 out -stations, 30 European missionaries including 8 wives, 123
schools with an average attendance of 16,000, and 460 teachers
and monitors. There were actually 30,000 children connected with
the schools, but the number had dropped a little on account of the
imposition of fees at Bandawe. The voluntary offerings of the
Christians at the various stations amounted to over £200.

While at Zomba he had much talk with Mr. Sharpe, who showed
real brotherliness and anxiety to help. " As you know," said the
Commissioner, " I take a deep interest in the work you are doing
and in the efforts to establish a thoroughly good educational institu-
tion on sound and sensible lines, and I can assure you that in
every possible way it will be my endeavour to support you in your
undertaking." Numerous matters were adjusted in connection
with the Mission properties, and the Doctor engaged to secure a
qualified man to survey the Livingstonia estate. Before he left
Blantyre he wrote expressing his gratitude for all the kindness of
the Commissioner. Such friendly relations between Government
officials and missionaries, he felt, would make their mutual work
easier and lead to the peaceful and rapid advancement of the
country.

When he arrived at Durban he went ashore in ordinary dress
and cloth cap, and, seeing some electrical works, he stopped and
fell into talk with the man in charge of the boilers, who took him
to be a homeless tramp. " Where did you come from last ? " he
was asked. " The interior," said the Doctor. " Oh, I have been
there myself — got malaria — and have it still. . . . It's a chilly

STUDENT OF ELECTRICITY 297

night — you can sleep over there " — indicating a corner between
the boilers where some stokers were lying. The engineer came
along and the Doctor began to speak to him about the machinery,
the first man, standing by, wondering at his knowledge. " You
know a bit about it." "A little ; I come from Livingstonia —
my name is Laws." It was a household word along the coast, and
the man knew it at once. Presently the supposed tramp was
prescribing for his malaria.

At Cape Town the Doctor was invited by Mr. Rhodes to lunch.
While waiting in the library the guests were informed that Rhodes,
having to go to town, had already lunched. There were whispers
of serious happenings in the Transvaal, and later the Doctor was
told that his host was hurrying in a special train to Kimberley.
Kruger had launched his ultimatum, and the Boer War had begun.

XIII. Student of Electricity

His first duty in Scotland was to appear at the Committee and
appeal for more workers — it was the chronic complaint of Living-
stonia as of all the mission fields of the Church — and moot his
schemes of construction and have them considered and sanctioned.
Thinking that the water supply and electric power undertakings
were sufficient to ask for meantime, he did not mention the road.
The Committee had to be convinced of the necessity for the two
projects and their practicability. Lord Overtoun, whose mind was
as big as his heart, was already converted, but others, though
sympathetic, shook their heads. The Doctor was unperturbed ;
quietly, persuasively, patiently he met every argument and objec-
tion. He showed that a pure pipe supply for the Station was
imperative in view of the increasing population and as an assurance
against disease. Dysentery was already common on account of
the contaminated supplies. A quaint letter from Yuraia, now the
" capitao " of the Station, told how every boy and girl was " suffer-
ing from stomach-aching ; during the months ago the place where
our drinking water lays its source was badly spoiled by workers.
Europeans are getting their drinking water from Vunguvunga " —
the sawmill two miles distant. It was the cost that troubled
members. The Doctor's faith was unshak able. " If," he said,
" God wishes it to be done, He will give us the means to do it."

When the sub-Committee which was appointed on the matter
met, the report showed that the material and freight would come to
£4000. It was felt that the undertaking could not be faced. A

298 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

sigh of disappointment went round the table. Then Lord Overtoun
quietly remarked, " Well, it is evident this is necessary. We
must all do a little more than we have done. ... Go ahead.
I'll meet the £4000." All were so taken by surprise and all hearts
were so full that it was not till later that the Committee thought of
thanking the generous donor. Five and a half miles of steel piping
were at once ordered.

Then came the question of an electrical installation, a scheme
based not only on the Doctor's desire for economy and efficiency
in work, but on his sympathy for the native boys and girls. Kero-
sene oil was the light on the Station, and what cost two shillings and
sixpence in Glasgow cost thirty shillings at Livingstonia. Its use
was severely restricted ; the boys had no lamp at all in their
dormitory, and could be seen studying at night by the light of the
fire on the floor, or outside the windows of the evening school
when classes were held. The Doctor showed in a clear and well-
reasoned statement that electricity would give ten times more
light, as well as provide power for the workshops and mills, which
were being increasingly hampered by lack of it, and be cheaper in
the end. He estimated the cost of the plant at £4000. A little
doubtful of his ability to secure so large an additional sum, he once
more fell back upon the Power that had always met his needs.
One friend gave him £1000, another £1000, a third £200, " a believer
in using the improvements of science for the furtherance of the
Master's kingdom, £100"; and so on, though now and again he
suffered a rebuff. A famous business knight referred contemptuously
to " Dr. Laws and his craze for money for electric lighting," and
refused to contribute to " his far-away fads," which, as the Doctor
was building up the kingdom of God and the knight was only
building iron bridges, did not disturb his equanimity. As sufficient
was obtained to go on with, the Committee sanctioned the proposal.

The installation he chose was a three-phase alternating current
system at a high voltage for transmission and power, and transform-
ing to a low 1 tension for lighting. But what of the knowledge
required to install and run the machinery ? Having been allowed
so much by a generous Committee, he could not very well ask them
for an electrical engineer at a time when they were straining every
nerve to secure and send out ordinary workers. If the scheme were
to be carried out, he must superintend the operations himself. He
was ready to do anything, go anywhere, if only his Master's cause
could be advanced. In a letter at this time to three boys, who
wished to be missionaries, occurs a suggestive paragraph. After

STUDENT OF ELECTRICITY 299

mentioning the difficulties of preparation and study he referred to
the inspiring example of Dr. Livingstone. " If you make up your
minds to hard, self-denying, persevering work the discipline will be
splendid for you, whether your lives are to be spent at home or
abroad. You can never learn too much or be too well prepared
for the work of a missionary. I would gladly go to College again
to-day to learn more if I had the time."

This is actually what the Doctor did. In order to qualify
himself for the work of looking after the electric machinery he went
as a regular student to the Heriot-Watt College in Edinburgh,
where he attended the class of electrical engineering and entered a
new region of technical knowledge. Coming down the Mound one
day, his head buzzing with abstruse terms, he met Dr. Ballantyne,
a well-known supporter of missions and friend of all missionaries.
" Do :tor," he said feelingly, " I am glad the New Testament was
not written in scientific language ! "

The other students pitied the grave, worn, elderly man, who was
so diligent and painstaking, suspecting that he was one of the
class whose occupation had been abolished by the introduction of
electricity, and that he was making a brave attempt to keep up
with the times. One of the cleverest, Mr. A. S. Chalmers, who was
in the choir of an Edinburgh church, was astonished to see the
" old fellow " enter the pulpit as the preacher for the day, and
more astonished to learn that he was the Rev. Dr. Laws of Living-
stonia. Meeting him later in the lobby of the College, he said,
" I would like to hear about Livingstonia." " All right," said the
Doctor, "come and have tea." The student became so interested
that he offered for the Mission. The Committee accepted him as
Technical Instructor in the Institution, and in this way the Doctor
secured first-class scientific help and skill for his various schemes.
He was also able to engage Mr. F. W. Hardie, a surveyor, for the
purpose of surveying the Mission estate.

For the next few months there was no busier man in Britain.
He was buying and testing all sorts of material, his keen, practical
mind devoting as much attention to the right kind of screw as to
the quality and durability of copper cables and dynamos. It was
hoped that the plant would be admitted into Central Africa duty
free, but, after much correspondence, only the agricultural machinery
was passed, and the rest had to pay the Customs dues. It was not
surprising that the Committee questioned the wisdom and justice
of a policy so little fitted to encourage those who were seeking to
advance the public welfare and the development of the country.

300 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XIV. Semi- Jubilee

While these important matters were occupying his attention
he was also unceasingly active on behalf of the Mission in other
directions. " Furlough " was a courtesy word to apply to his
vacation. " You must have a rest — but you might take a service
for me on such-and-such a date," was the burden of letters that
poured in upon him. His desire to increase the interest in Living-
stonia induced him to accept far more of these invitations than he
ought reasonably to have done. There were Sundays on which
he gave six addresses, and such occasions were usually followed by
two or three days' fever. His ordinary plan was to describe the
work going on. So engrossed did he sometimes become that he
lost notion of time. Once he was asked to give a quarter of an
hour's address in the drawing-room of Dr. Ballantyne. Arriving
from London, he proceeded straight to the house and began to
speak. The time-limit passed, but he went on, unconscious of
trespassing. When the half-hour came Dr. Ballantyne looked
uneasily at the clock and at the audience, but the tale was absorbing
and no one seemed put out. By and by the speaker happened to
glance at the clock. He stopped in the middle of a sentence, stared,
and then, sitting down, covered his face with his hands. He had
spoken for an hour and a half.

On occasion he performed a little missionary surgery, and
astonished congregations by quietly informing them that their
average givings amounted to less per week than they paid for a
single Scotsman or Herald. " The majority of people," he said,
" do not realize that missionary work is one of the main objects
for which the Church of Christ exists." His advocacy touched
many hearts and brought many generous gifts to the Mission,
and these he accepted as a leading from God that He meant him
to attempt greater things still, and to trust that the means would be
supplied. One of these contributions simply said, " The enclosed
is to grind corn at Livingstonia " ; another came from Miss Melville,
whom he assured of " the constant affection of your grey-headed
boy." A few months later this lady, who had so greatly influenced
his life, passed away.

He attended and spoke at the International Student Missionary
Conference in London and also, as usual, the Universities Mission
meeting. His old friend Lugard, still adding to his fame and
honours, was unable to be present at the latter, but wrote to
the Doctor : "I have seen many missions since those days on

SEMI-JUBILEE 301

Lake Nyasa, but yours remains my ideal mission, because it is so
free from ostentation and carries out so effective and thorough a
work on such sound practical lines."

A break came in the shape of a visit to America, whither he
went as one of 1600 delegates to the Ecumenical Missionary
Conference in New York, a gathering presided over by General
Harrison, ex-President, and welcomed by President M'Kinley and
by Mr. Roosevelt, then Governor of the State. Dr. Laws delivered
an address on the educational aspects of the Livingstonia Mission.
But his chief purpose was, as on the former occasion, to study in-
stitutions and methods. There are two great negro colleges in the
South, that of Hampton, in Virginia, staffed by white men, the
other, Tuskegee, by coloured: along with Mr. and Mrs. Daly he visited
and stayed two days at the former as being on lines more likely to
be helpful to him in Africa. With the needs of Livingstonia in
mind he went on to the great milling centres, Minneapolis and
St. Paul, and inspected the mills, and returned by Chicago, Toronto,
and Buffalo to New York, where a friend presented him with £100
to help in securing a roller flour-mill. As his cousin was in this
line of business he arranged that one suitable for the Station should
be sent out direct from America.

October 12, 1900, was the twenty-fifth anniversary of the
entrance of the Ilala into Lake Nyasa, and the Doctor spent it
" in gratitude, solemn awe, and earnest hope." The event was
celebrated by a gathering in Glasgow, at which addresses were given
by Lord Overtoun,- Dr. Stewart, Dr. Laws, and Mr. Fraser ; and at
their first meeting the Committee " thanked God for the gift of
Dr. Laws and his noble service," and included Mrs. Laws in their
congratulations. At Livingstonia the celebration took the form
of a missionary conference, the first of its kind in Central Africa.
Seven churches and societies sent thirty-three delegates, repre-
senting Scotland, England, Cape Colony, Switzerland, and Germany.
As if in honour of the occasion the whole district was a blaze of
illuminations, bush fires burning night and day, that on Mt.
Waller being a magnificent spectacle.. At noon an affectionate
greeting was dispatched to the Doctor. The Presbytery of
Livingstonia, which had been lately formed, also sent a congratu-
latory message, which stated that the success of the Mission had
been due " under God to his forethought, plans, and earnest and
unceasing labours."

He was present at the union of the Free and United Presbyterian
Churches on 31st October, to him a wonderfully moving spectacle,

302 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and spoke on the missionary evening along with Dr. Stewart. What
pleased him especially was the fact that the first winter of the Union
was given up to a great campaign in the interest of foreign mission
work. Both he and Mr. Fraser were kept at home by the Com-
mittee to take part in it. In January igoi he was one of a deputa-
tion to the Foreign Office in connection with a proposed railway
between Blantyre and Port Herald on the Shire, a matter in which
he took much interest. His practical knowledge and intimate
acquaintance with the ground proved of great value to those pro-
moting the scheme.

There was never a furlough without some shadow caused by
the death of gallant workers in the field. Now it was Mr. Duff
Macgregor, whom the Doctor had found a true and loyal friend. He
was an artisan missionary who gloried in walking in the footsteps
of the carpenter of Nazareth and refused to leave his post. " Tell
the people at home," he said, " that I have fought it out to the very
end." Such an event made the Doctor long to be back in Africa.
" Often my thoughts are with them all, and especially with the little
ones. When lying sleepless at night or in the early morning these
waking hours are spent in prayer for them all. Somehow I cannot
get rid of the feeling that I am affected by any trouble which over-
takes any of them out there. I suppose that in addition to the
natural interest I have in my fellow-workers the intense feeling of
responsibility for my companions which was burned into me during
the early years has become part of my nature."

Before he left in June 190 1 he was able to answer the many
inquiries addressed to him for information regarding the Mission
by simply sending his correspondents a copy of Daybreak in
Livingstonia, by the Rev. J. W. Jack, M.A., which had just been
published with an introduction from his pen — a remarkably minute
and accurate narrative — but he always said, " Please deduct 90 per
cent, as discount from what Mr. Jack says about myself, as no one
knows better than I do how far short I have come of the ideal I
aimed at."

A parting letter from Lord Overtoun made up for many a set-
back and rebuff. " You go out," he wrote, " knowing that you
possess the unbounded confidence and affection not only of the
Committee and Foreign Mission Committee, but of the whole
Church. . . . We look to you to guide the policy and advise as to
the details of all the work which, under God, has been the result
of your wise and unwearied labour, not forgetting Mrs. Laws, whose
influence has been such a powerful factor in the Mission."

MAGIC WATER 303

With nothing worse than an attack of dysentery on the river
he reached Bandawe in August. Queer memories stirred as he went
ashore and spoke to the natives. There was Marenga, the sole
survivor of the Chiefs in power in 1875, with a church and Christian
community in his village, yet himself making no profession. Here
was another man — where had the Doctor seen him before ? In a
flash the scene came back. Two men with loaded guns were about
to murder their enemies : the Doctor held on to one by the finger
and the other by his belt, and as both struggled frantically to get
free, their guns were often gaping in his face. He could see yet
the heart pulsations of one on his naked breast, down which the
perspiration was streaming. And here he was, dressed, smiling,
and shaking the Sing'anga cordially by the hand.

XV. Magic Water

What faced the Doctor was still pioneer work of the most arduous
and difficult kind ; he was now seeking to introduce into the wild
heart of Nyasaland conditions which did not exist in the Adminis-
trative capital, which, indeed, could only be found in populous
civilized centres. The task before him might have paralysed a
lesser man, but he rose to the height of each fresh occasion, his mind
seeming to develop with the increasing calls on his powers. " The
Institution," wrote one who saw it at this time, " is a marvellous
conception. Truly Dr. Laws is working for the next generation,
for only the next generation will reap the full advantage." But he
had the assistance of a competent staff, to whom he never failed
to give the fullest credit.

The mass of ordered material, about 300 tons in all, was on its
way out, being gradually transported by the African Lakes Corpora-
tion up the Zambezi and the Shire, overland to Matope, by barge
along the Upper Shire and by Lake steamer to Florence Bay — a
laborious and tedious process. To provide facilities for handling
the stuff and conveying it to the Institution was the Doctor's first
care. A long jetty was run into the Lake, a crane erected, and a
storehouse built on the shore. Then he faced the problem of
communication between the Lake and the plateau. It was clear
to his mind that a broad wagon road must come sooner or later
and form an important link in the great trunk route which was to
run from the South through Ngoniland and on to Tanganyika.
On and about the plateau and along the top of the escarpment
towards Mt. Waller fairly good broad roads had been constructed

304 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and were in use, but only rough native paths led down to the shore,
descending 2300 feet in the course of 3 miles. The carriers were
refusing to carry loads up and down these tracks, even at increased
rates of pay, and were going on 50 and 60 miles farther for work.
Not only as a measure of necessity but as a matter of economy
a wagon road was imperative, and convinced that it was his duty
to construct it the Doctor proceeded with the task.

With Mr. Hardie, the surveyor, he scrambled up and down the
precipices, searching for the gradients he had formerly favoured,
only discovering them when the grass was burnt off, and was
pleased when they were pronounced to be the best for the purpose.
Mr. Hardie laid out a track, 15 to 20 feet in breadth, with a gradient
of about 1 in 20. One great semicircular gorge presented an
almost perpendicular face of sandstone and schist, and the difficulty
was to make the road crooked enough to get it long enough, but
this was overcome by cutting a series of zigzags along the cliff side.
It was an extraordinarily heavy piece of industrial work, involving
deep digging, filling up of gullies, and damming streams — all done
by natives with the simplest of tools and appliances. Much
blasting had also to be accomplished. The Doctor likened the
rocks to religious indifference, which can listen to all arguments
and never budge : they took the gunpowder, but it merely whistled
through the crevices, and they remained as stolidly immovable as
before. But he was by this time one of the most patient of men.

He found the cost far exceeding his estimate, and as the work
went on the financial outlook gave him frequent anxiety. Con-
siderable sums out of his own hard-earned savings were cheerfully
expended without a soul knowing of it ; gifts also came from friends
in answer, as he believed, to prayer, and a bequest from a lady in
Aberdeen eased the situation to such an extent that the road was
given her name and called the Longmuir Road.

He also built a large double-storey hygienic building — 240 feet
long and 30 feet wide — providing accommodation for the carpentry,
printing, ironmongery, and engineering departments, a book-store,
and a technical schoolroom, with engine and motor room, and the
necessary shafting and pulleys. Disliking intensely the ordinary
native kraal, a focus of mud and filth, and unprotected from the
attacks of the larger carnivora, he resolved to give the Station a
model farm and yard, and arranged for a Homestead which included
an office, a flour-mill, byres, stables, and granary.

It was not until well on in 1902 that the material began to be
dropped at the Bay, a process not unattended by incident. On

The Stevenson Stone

One of the
Finest Specimens of
Native Workmanship

Among the Hollyhocks

Blantyre Church, built by Natives

Chilembwe's Church

being blown up by

the Military (p. 354)

"The Illuminated Clock" (p. 361)
This Photograph was taken at night

MAGIC WATER 305

one occasion ere the barge could reach the jetty from the steamer
the sea rose and she filled and sank, and pipes and other articles
had to be dragged out by Mr. Chalmers and his men standing up
to their necks in the water.

When Mr. Hardie checked the Doctor's measurements for the
water-supply he found them correct : this was a relief, for the
Committee had pinned their faith to his statements, and any error
might have delayed the work or increased the cost. For the upper
works clay pipes were to be used, and the various soils in the neigh-
bourhood were tested. Out of the most suitable a million moulds
were manufactured by the new pug-mill, but inexperience of the
conditions resulted in the loss of from 30 to 40 per cent., and a kiln
was built to turn out the rest.

The pipes were carried up to the intake, where the Manchewe
came tumbling down the side of Mt. Nyamkowa. Here a settling
pond was constructed. Constant breakages of the clay pipes
caused infinite trouble — they were subsequently replaced by an
open flume — but all were laid at last ; and then the 4-inch and
2-inch steel pipes were jointed and laid down the hill and across the
valley and up to the plateau, where smaller bores distributed the
supply to the workshops and houses. The distance from the intake
to the Institution was 5 miles.

The natives had been watching the progress of the work with
interest but with unyielding scepticism. Water could run downhill,
but not even white men who did such marvellous things could
induce it to run uphill. On 16th January 1904 the whole of the
population on the plateau gathered round one of the fire-hydrants
in front of the Doctor's house. A beautiful rainbow hung in the
heavens as the Doctor told the story of the undertaking. After
a prayer of thanksgiving, Mrs. Laws turned the tap and the water
gushed forth. The natives were amazed. Water, after all, could
run uphill. White man's magic ! It must be a trick ! What of
the other taps ? Off scampered the boys and girls to test the
supplies outside the dormitories. There also the water flowed in
cool, clear streams.

In a week the marvellous had become the commonplace.

Progress was also being made with the electric installation.
A power-house in the Manchewe valley was built, and a lade and
settling-pond constructed. A riveted iron pipe, 15 inches in dia-
meter and 492 feet long, led the water to the power-house. The
machinery was duplicated in case of accidents, but the two turbines
and the two dynamos could, if necessary, be run simultaneously.
20

3o6 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

A current of 2000 volts was generated and conveyed by cable to the
Homestead, where a transformer supplied 190 volts to drive the
mills ; another reduced the voltage for lighting purposes, and
another provided the power for the industrial workshops, printing
department, and technical school.

Many vexatious difficulties were encountered in the course of
the work, and it was not until 12th October 1905, the historic anni-
versary, that the current was switched on at the power-house.
In the evening the natives and Europeans gathered in the school,
which was lit by the old oil lamps. These were put out and only a
candle left on a table, at which sat the wife of Dr. Innes, with her
infant on her knee. At a given moment the baby fingers were
placed on the button, and a soft, clear glow flooded the room. The
momentary hush of surprise was followed by cries of wonder and
delight from the natives. It was a triumph for Mr. Chalmers and
Ms fellow-workers, and not least for the Doctor, who had seen one
more dream realized.

Both the telegraph loop-line and the telephone line to the Lake
shore were also completed, and Livingstonia was in immediate
touch with the outside world. A message to or from Scotland
that would have taken six months to deliver in 1875 was now
received within a few hours.

Then the final touches were given to the Longmuir Road, and
the first three wagons traversed it from end to end, at once effect-
ing a considerable reduction in the cost of transport. The track
stood the rains well until a fall of 4 inches in twenty-four hours
occurred, when some of the steep banks gave way and tons of earth
fell and blocked the traffic for a time. By visitors, competent to
judge, it was regarded as one of the most remarkable pieces of road
engineering in the world. " I have seen nothing better in the
Himalayas," said one. " It compares favourably with the roads
in Switzerland and the Tyrol," was the verdict of another.

It had added, at a cost of £2500, io| miles to the 50 miles of
roadway already constructed on the Institution property.

XVI. £5000 for a Hospital

The four foundations on which rested the future of the In-
stitution— roads, water, light, and power — were now laid. Although
the task of securing them bulks largely in the story of the Mission,
it bulks less in the Doctor's life than might be supposed. To him
they were but the stepping-stones to higher things — means to an

i>5000 FOR A HOSPITAL 307

end ; they meant the efficient equipment of the Institution, the
perfecting of the instrument which was to serve the real purpose
of all his endeavour, the evangelizing of Livingstonia. Whilst
they were being carried out, he never relaxed his grip on the
direction of other work or slackened in his anxious solicitude for
the moral and spiritual welfare of those under his care.

" All the work of our little community," he wrote, " converges
towards its great central purpose of winning the natives to Christ,
and so its Church life is the inner circle of it all with the Lord as its
centre." This life was developing slowly but surely. There was a
steady stream of communicants, though many of these were, natur-
ally, pupils in the classes and so non-resident. Elders had been
ordained, and all the features of congregational activity were going
on. Sunday was the busiest day on the Station. There were
classes for men hearers and men and women catechumens at 7 a.m. ;
a class for Sunday-school teachers at 9 a.m. ; a vernacular service at
10 a.m., followed by a class for women hearers. A similar class was
held in the afternoon ; at 3 p.m. there were the boys' and girls'
Sunday schools ; at 4.30 p.m. a vernacular service ; and at 7 p.m. an
English service, attended also by the Institution pupils. During the
week each department began with worship at sunrise, and a short
service preceded ihe resumption of work at 2 p.m. A prayer-meeting
for natives was held on Wednesday afternoons at 4.30, and one for
Europeans at 7 p.m. On Friday there was a class for preachers. At
communion seasons the services had frequently to be held out of
doors on account of the large attendances, as many as 3000 being
present.

All this work was duplicated at the various out -stations, where
its success was as marked as at the Institution. Perhaps the offer-
ings at these villages measured in some degree the sincerity of the
people. Here, for example, is a list of articles on one occasion :

Native flour .

604 lb.

Brass bracelets .

17

Sheep .

1

Axes

3

Fowls and pigeons .

18

Iron spoon

1

Bananas

1 bunch.

Cash

. I2/Il£

But though the Doctor rejoiced it was with a certain measure
of anxiety. In the early days, the persecution which converts had
to endure made religious confession a matter of genuine conviction,
but now with a generation which had never heard the war-cries of
friends and foes, church connection was becoming a respectable
and even a fashionable thing, and the fact threw an added responsi-
bility on those who were shepherding them.

3o8 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

The Doctor's policy of development was outlined in a letter
at this time : " I have always held very strongly that in the Foreign
Field the native Churches should grow up on their own lines and
in their own surroundings if they are to be strong and healthy and
should not be presbyteries of any of our home Churches . . . the
difficulties are small compared with the hindrance to the life and
growth of the Church brought about by trying to clothe an infant
with the adult garments of the growth of centuries instead of the
swaddling bands corresponding to its life-history. It will take
a good deal of discussion before the whole of it is wrought out,
but I hope it will come by and by." The creed of any future
Presbyterian Church of Africa, he maintained, should be of the
simplest nature and divested of all European elements not con-
sonant with the needs of the natives.

On the educational side of the Institution — now called the
Overt oun Institution — there were complete courses from ABC
to theology: an elementary school in which the vernacular was
chiefly used; a middle school Anglo-vernacular in character; a
normal school in connection with which there was a continuation
school for the training of outside teachers ; commercial courses for
training clerks, storekeepers, and telegraphists ; an arts course, a
medical course, and a theological course, and a school for the blind.

The majority of the pupils were being trained as teachers, batches
of whom were being turned out each year and settled in the villages,
thus enlarging the permanent sphere and influence of the Mission.
No one expected overmuch from these lads. Five years' education
and discipline, no matter how efficient, did not necessarily trans-
form a raw native into a scholar or a Christian ; the culture was of
an elementary character, and often a year in the isolation of the
wilds was a prelude to a moral breakdown ; but, on the whole,
they did well, performed good, earnest work, and saved the
Europeans a vast amount of routine labour. Not a few left their
mark on the villages in which they taught.

Throughout the entire Mission field at this time there were
200 schools, with 500 teachers and 14,000 pupils, and educationists
in Scotland could not understand why the amount charged for the
wages of the teachers and the upkeep of the schools was only £1300
per annum. But the buildings were only mud huts, and the equip-
ment a few " karata " or alphabet sheets, and some slates and
pencils. The whole cost was borne by the Mission, as there was
yet no Government grant-in-aid.

The evangelistic side of the teachers' service was specially

.£5000 FOR A HOSPITAL 309

under the care of the Doctor. A number of the older men had
proved steady and useful, but their lack of early training had
prevented them taking the theological course. For these the
Doctor began an evangelist's class, chiefly in the vernacular, with
a view not only of increasing their qualifications but of discovering
whether any possessed ability exceptional enough to warrant them
training for the pastorate. It was to these men he looked for the
extension of Christ's Kingdom in their districts. Speaking of their
character and work, he said : " I have seen them on their way
home after the term conducting evening prayers with the villagers
among whom they had stopped to spend the night. This scene
recurs to me. Night has come. The waves of the Lake beat
steadily on the beach. A few stars are seen through the cloud-
rift. In the gathering darkness the Christians have come together,
in the open, for evening prayers. They look like shadows, and are
silent as mice. Before them, leading them in prayer, stands one
of the evangelists, returning from his studies. In his day he was a
warrior of renown. Now, in simple, direct speech, he tells them of
Christ."

Three lads, patient, diligent plodders, had acquired a moral
and intellectual capacity which justified them going into the theo-
logical class. They received instruction in Church History, Old
and New Testament Exegesis, and Systematic Theology, while, in
addition, Dr. Laws gave them daily an hour's talk on the function
of Government, the necessity for taxation, the. use of money, the
evil of debt, the necessity for industry and thrift, the import-
ance of good housing and sanitation, and other practical subjects.
They were rather surprised to find that taxation endured under
native rule was heavier than that under British administration.
One was Charles Domingo, whom Koyi had picked up at Quilimane ;
he was now the first native assistant in the school and an elder
in the congregation. An ideal teacher, he maintained order and
discipline, and yet contrived to keep the pupils bright and happy.
The other two were Hezekiah Tweza, a Ngoni boy, and Yesaya
Mwasi, from Bandawe\ All three, when their studies were com-
pleted, were licensed and then placed on probationary service.

Amongst other developments was a Christian Endeavour Society,
formed for the benefit of the younger boys and girls, the members
of which agreed to do something with their hands and their mind
for Christ's sake and to devote part of every day to meditation
and reading of the Bible and prayer. For the latter, most of them
chose the half-hour before the afternoon work began, and it has

3io LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

since been commonly reserved for the purpose throughout the
Station. Not a few of the pupils became Christians through their
reading of the New Testament during this period. A Young
Men's Christian Association was also begun, whilst a Literary
Society gave the pupils the opportunity of discussing native, social,
and other problems. Some curious questions were threshed out,
such as the poison ordeal, which one speaker said was often over-
ruled by a higher power to mete out justice, and the rival claims
of the tribes to superiority, the voting going in favour of the
Ngoni.

Apart from his class and administrative work the Doctor
attended to all the medical cases ; in a single month he had over
1500 at the dispensary in addition to those in hospital and amongst
the Europeans. He was also frequently called out at night. A
knock would come to the door when he was thinking of retiring,
and he would spend many hours in a hut beside a smoking fire
with the dreaded tampan and other insects crawling over the
floor. Epidemics of influenza and smallpox swept over the
district, and the people were at the mercy of the witch-doctors, who
demanded large sums for their so-called cures. The Doctor once
surprised one of these impostors dancing and " making medicine "
in the centre of a crowd. The man quailed before the look given
him, and fled, and the Doctor took his place and denounced his
quackery. The audience cheered, and admitted they were being
robbed right and left without benefit. Turning to the headman
the Doctor said, " Why don't you catch and thrash him ? " " We
dare not," was the reply ; " if we did he would kill us with his
sorcery."

He often longed for a commodious hospital which would not
only be a means of relieving suffering but afford a training-ground
for Africans in the art of healing. The rudiments of such an
institution already existed, and lads and girls were being taught
to be nurses and dispensers, but he lacked accommodation and
equipment. It was when the outlook seemed darkest that he
received a letter from the Committee stating that the Misses Gordon,
of Montrose, had offered £5000 for a hospital in memory of their
brother, the Rev. David Gordon, the institution to be known as
the " David Gordon Memorial Hospital." It was a wonderful
gift, and made the Doctor very happy but very humble. The
scheme was too important to be undertaken hurriedly, and his
first care was to make an exhaustive study of hospital construction
and equipment. He wrote to India and elsewhere for information,

THE INDUSTRIAL GOSPEL 311

and it was years before the plans for the building were sent home
for the criticism and advice of experts.

XVII. The Industrial Gospel

The aim of the Doctor was to have every part of the work
contribute to the spread of the Gospel, and just as he made the
schools an evangelizing agency so his effort was to turn the work-
shops into spiritual training centres. He impressed on the artisan
missionaries that they could be as powerful a religious force at the
bench as in the pulpit ; the workshops were, indeed, in a sense, the
Foreign Mission department of the Institution. Boys came from
remote districts raw and ignorant, learnt something about Christ
and the new way of life, and returned and repeated what they had
heard to their people. This was the primary purpose of the In-
stitution— to turn out craftsmen who would assist directly in the
extension of the Mission or go back to their hamlets as Christian
laymen and develop native industrial life, but the very success of
the Doctor's schemes tended at first to frustrate his object. The
reputation of the lads spread far and wide, and Gorernment,
planters, and merchants offered them strong inducements to enter
their service. As soon as their time was up they immediately
found situations and high wages as telegraphists, printers, store-
keepers, superintendents of native workmen, and so on. They
could be found from Chinde to the Congo Free State, and as far
south as the Transvaal.

The Doctor could not prevent this process any more than he
could prevent the Government recruiting labour for the gold mines
— an experiment which fortunately failed and has never been tried
since. He could only hope and pray that wherever the lads went
they would live clean, moral lives, and exert a Christian influence.
To many their experience away from all religious help and tribal
restraint brought disillusionment, bitterness, and demoralization.
But a wonderfully large proportion kept the faith and maintained
their character and self-respect. As the Doctor remarked, " For
the strong the trial does good ; for the weak it means ruin." Not
only did the best do good craft work, support themselves, and save
money, but they acted as unpaid missionaries. Letters came from
far distant regions telling how they were making a stand for Christ
against evil conditions, and how in their spare time they were
reading and preaching to the people about them. At Elizabethville
one started an evening school. They did not forget Livingstonia,

312 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and often sent contributions to the work. A letter from Johannes-
burg contained £3, 8s., subscribed for by fifty-one natives of Nyasa.

It was a tribute to their capacity that applications for their
services came from other countries. The Department of Public
Works in British East Africa sent for builders and carpenters ; a
similar request came from the Malay Straits ; Barotseland wanted
teachers ; the British South Africa Company found it worth while
making an annual grant of £75 to the Institution to train lads for
Government service in Rhodesia.

At this time there were 150 indentured apprentices and over
300 lads employed on yearly engagements, as well as several
thousand labourers engaged for a month or more at a time. So
great was the desire to learn a trade that the carpenter's shop had
to refuse 126 applications in the course of a year because of lack of
accommodation and appliances. There might be seen a boy being
taught to drive a nail or draw a straight line, and alongside of him
one doing the most intricate and beautiful inlaid work ; anything
and everything was turned out, from a pair of wheels to a complete
suite of furniture for a house or church.

A department in which the Doctor took great personal interest
was the printing office, now fulfilling his highest hopes and pouring
out a flood of school and other literature not only for the various
stations but for other missions in Central Africa and for officials
and planters. One of the largest jobs he undertook and one which
gave him " unspeakable joy " was the printing of the Luban New
Testament for Mr. Dan Crawford of the Garenganze Mission, who
was his guest for the greater part of a year while it was passing
through the press. The author of Thinking Black had a great regard
for the " sunny, hospitable " Doctor, and for Mrs. Laws, " the mother
of us all, who in rain and shine has battled on more than any."
" The Doctor," he wrote, " is a man whereof we all say, ' I thank
God for every remembrance of him.' Shut in as I have been for
about sixteen years with no furlough, it was the thought of a Laws
in the cast, a Coillard in the -outh, and a Currie in the far west
that stiffened my back in loneliness many a time." He added :
" The blight of Africa is the work of the mushroom type. It was
the good Dr. Laws who cut into the lotus life of the negro and made
him honour hard work. Livingstonia more than any place has
tabooed a mere mist of fine words. The so-called industrialism is
a deep remedial force operating for all that is good and healthy."
In his book he refers to " God's lighthouse of Livingstonia shining
true. And lighthouse is the true metaphor to symbolize Dr. Laws'

THE INDUSTRIAL GOSPEL 313

work out there : lighthouses do not ring bells and fire cannons to
call attention to their shining ; they just shine out. Likewise
Livingstonia."

When the New Testament had been set up, stereotyped, printed,
and bound, all by natives, Mr. Crawford sent a company of men for
the first consignment. They marched from Luanza to Livingstonia,
a six weeks' journey, and remained only a day or two at the Station,
the wonders of which left them speechless with amazement.
Shouldering their boxes of New Testaments and Gospels they
stepped out cheerfully again on their long tramp over paths which
but a few years before had been trodden wearily by slaves bearing
ivory loads. " Behold to-day," wrote Mr. Crawford, " the grand
sight of the Testament caravan twisting down the hillside — a
singing band of young negroes ! When I called over the names
and asked, ' Nobody sick on the road ? ' ' Sick ? ' remonstrated the
lads ; ' the Testament does not give disease ! ' "

The mason's yard on the Station presented such a scene as
could perhaps only be witnessed in Scotland. In opening up the
quarry the Doctor had introduced a new and promising industry.
The rock was a fine indurated mud-stone of a cool grey colour, well
adapted to give beautiful architectural effects, and of a quality
which hardened the longer it was exposed to the air. For the
mason work the natives showed special aptitude, and were turning
out first-rate results. Tombstones — which were in great request,
as many as twenty being on order at one time — a cross for Tangan-
yika, a baptismal font for Bandaw6, a Queen Victoria Memorial
stone for Zomba, were types of what were being produced. Perhaps
the best example of the men's skill was the Stevenson Stone, an
Ionic cross erected near Karonga to the memory of Mr. Stevenson,
with panels commemorating the work of the two missionary
engineers, Stewart and M'Ewan. It stands strong and solitary on
the edge of a high cliff overlooking the spot where Mlozi's strong-
hold was situated and at its feet the winding road associated with
these three Europeans.

The Doctor's idea was that all the buildings, and especially the
coming church, should be constructed of stone. " Let the work be
of a permanent character," he said, "even if we have to hasten
slowly." In order to train the hewers he decided to erect one
house, the manse, out of the quarry, the blocks being stippled and
unhewn at the corners. He saw, however, that the expense of a
general building programme in stone would be objected to, and
abandoned the intention : the only stone building on the Station —

314 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and the only one in Central Africa — was, therefore, his own
dwelling.

The Agricultural Department was trainng its own class of
apprentices, creating a new type of cultivator, and disseminating
a knowledge of better methods of harvesting the fruits of the earth.
Keen on afforestation, the Doctor was planting out hundreds of
thousands of trees on the hillsides and experimenting with cotton,
coffee, tea, and other products. It tasked the energies of the
Department to the utmost to supply all the food needed for the
growing Station community.

Engineering and blacksmith work, lumbering, brickmaking, and
sawmilling continued on an extensive scale ; and amongst minor
activities were classes in skin-dressing, cord-making, and basket and
mat-making.

The little post office — an honorary service — was one of the
busiest spots on the Station. The letters handled in 1903 numbered
7463, the book packages 5240, and the parcels 305.

XVIII. A Political Triumph

In regard to Ngoniland, Sir Alfred Sharpe trusted the Doctoi
implicitly, and would make no move until he was satisfied that the
time was ripe for taking over the country. " Write and tell me
when you are satisfied," he said, " and I will act at once." This
threw a heavy responsibility on the Doctor, for if he said the word
and afterwards any untoward incident occurred through native
hot -heads or tactless officials the fine work built up by Dr. Elmslie,
Mr. Fraser, Mr. Stuart, and others might be wrecked. Nevertheless,
the step, he felt, must now be taken. The old Chiefs were dying out ;
tribal restraints were breaking down ; the people were scattering,
and law cases were being carried to the nearest " bomas " or
Government Stations. It was either Crown government or chaos
and anarchy.

In April 1904 he wrote Sir Alfred to this effect, pointing out,
however, that success would depend on the attitude of the man
who was left in charge and how he respected the older natives who
had long held positions of authority : these, he said, should be given
minor posts of influence. Sir Alfred agreed, and did a thing the
like of which was surely unparalleled in the story of British
colonization. He went up into the wilds of Ngoniland to annex
the country, unattended by the military, and taking only his wife
with him.

A POLITICAL TRIUMPH 315

But he first extended his journey to Livingstonia, where he
spent two days with the Doctor, he and Lady Sharpe being the
first guests in the new stone house, with which they were greatly
pleased. " If only I could have got trained native workers," Sir
Alfred remarked, " I would have built Zomba of stone." He was
also impressed with the extent, variety, and complexity of the work
going on at so great a distance from the centres of civilization.

Far into the night he and the Doctor sat and discussed the
situation in Ngoniland in all its bearings, the Doctor endeavouring
to speak the mind of the Ngoniland missionaries, as far as he knew it,
as well as his own. Messengers were then dispatched south to call
the Ngoni to an indaba, the most momentous in their history. The
Commissioner was anxious that both Mr. Fraser and Mr. Stuart
should be present — Dr. Elmslie was on furlough — lest the people
might suppose the Mission was opposed to the change ; but the
Doctor, while acquiescing, said that the negotiations should be
directly between the Government and the people. It was arranged,
therefore, that the Commissioner should pitch his camp near
Ekwendeni, and yet far enough from it to indicate independent
action.

When the Commissioner and Lady Sharpe left in the morning
the Doctor, following his usual custom, knelt down with apostolic
simplicity and committed the visitors to the care and protection of
God, and asked His blessing on the critical mission which was being
undertaken. On the day fixed for the conference — 2nd September
— his thoughts were continually in Ngoniland, and his spirit was
engaged in earnest prayer for the success of the meeting.

The Ngoni gathered in their thousands, Chiefs and indunas and
fighting men, with spears and shields, the proudest and most
warlike people in Central Africa, and the Commissioner walked into
their midst to take away their independence, with all the implica-
tion which that involved — the surrender of their old care-free life,
the submission to outside authority, the imposition of taxation —
and he was alone. The few soldiers he had brought with him on
his tour as a matter of form mingled, unarmed, with the spectators.
Near by sat Lady Sharpe and Mrs. Stuart, the only women in the
assembly. Mr. Fraser and Mr. Stuart were also there, looking on.

Sir Alfred sat in the midst of the circle, a Mission teacher by his
side interpreting. His opening words disarmed suspicion, and as he
went on the attention became quiet and favourable. There was
to be no interference with the constitution of the tribe, the col-
lectors coming rather to guide and strengthen and protect ; the

3i6 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

police would be of their own people, and all past cases would be
blotted out, and a new book opened. With patience and tact he
answered all questions, and by sunset Ngoniland had been incor-
porated into the Empire.

It was a triumph for the Doctor and his colleagues, and Sir
Alfred was not slow to acknowledge it. " I was surprised," he
wrote to the Doctor, " to find the Chiefs already quite prepared
and ready — if not even glad to accept the new condition of affairs :
this is undoubtedly largely due to the influence exercised by your
people. The real early work we have to thank you for, and the
difficulties to be experienced in these days are not, after all, great
compared with those which you had. Newcomers know little of
those days and those troubles, but the ones who know our ' ancient '
history are fully aware of the very great work carried out by you
and your helpers." The Doctor calculated that the Mission had
saved the Empire some £20,000 by this peaceful settlement — an
estimate based on a statement made to him by Mr. Rhodes as to the
probable cost of an expedition.

It was characteristic of the Doctor to think little of his own part
and to send a cablegram to Dr. Elmslie in Scotland telling him of
the crown that had been put upon his life-work.

The right man for the difficult position of magistrate was sent,
and all continued well.

XIX. The Romance of the West

From the Doctor's point of view the outstanding development
of these years was the extension of the work towards the west — the
development of that third parallel line of stations which had been
part of his original plan for the occupation of the country.

The story of the movement was in itself a romance. It arose
out of the week-end itinerating, which had never ceased since the
Doctor began it in the early days. This work produced a mission-
ary spirit, which was fanned by the Doctor's frequent references
to the needs of what he called, in his favourite phrase, the " regions
beyond " — the country to the south, the home of the Henga and
Tumbuka, the immediate west where the Poka dwelt, and the
farther west, the domain of the Senga and other tribes.

With the new sense of security that had come with the cessation
of raiding, a gradual redistribution of the population had taken
place. The Poka had come out of their caves and down from their
perches, and built along the fiats, while the Henga and Tumbuka

THE ROMANCE OF THE WEST 317

straggled back to their old homes and gradually repeopled the
Rukuru plain. The Lake villages had also been spreading out
until they now ran almost continuously along the shore. Peace
and leisure brought a recrudescence of heathenism, and vile revelries
disturbed the serenity of the night. Evangelizing was peculiarly
difficult work, but two by two the pupils went forth on Sundays
and during vacations, and preached and taught in the villages,
not receiving a farthing of pay for the service, but animated only
by earnest spiritual impulse. It was not long before a healthier
public opinion was created, and the people were building schools
and churches. Then tours farther afield were organized.

The western area was as yet practically unknown. Nyamkowa,
towering above the Station, was one of the outliers of an extensive
mountain system called the Nyika plateau, some of the peaks of
which rose to 10,000 feet, a wild, cold, wind-swept area, almost
inaccessible, and completely uninhabited except for a few Poka
villagers who lived a lonely individualistic half-animal existence
in the more kindly glens. So bleak was the higher ground that
natives travelling over it often succumbed. Once a party of workers
returning from the Institution met with so bitter a temperature
that two of the strongest and healthiest died beside the path.
At a distance of four days' march the mountains descended into
the Marambo or wide marshy plains of the Loangwa— the river
flowing south to the Zambezi — where elephants, zebra, and eland
roamed in great numbers. This was the country of the Senga,
the Wemba, and the Wisa.

When volunteers were called for to spend the long vacation in
these remoter districts of Northern Rhodesia, there was a quick
response, and thirty-two were accepted, one an ex-raider and the
nephew of the paramount Chief of the Ngoni. They had hard
marching and trying experiences, for the western peoples only
knew of war parties from the east carrying fire and spear through
the land ; they were received with suspicion, were opposed and
refused meeting-places and food, lived in squalid huts, and were
in constant contact with the grossest sin, but they stuck cheerfully
to their task and came back full of enthusiasm. When, next
vacation, volunteers were again asked for, it was feared that the
response would be small : the pupils had not seen their home or
friends for a year, but they willingly made the new sacrifice, and
the band that shouldered their little bundles and left the Institution
numbered fifty. They reached a point as far west as seven to
eight days' journey, -joining hands with the Loudon workers on the

318 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

south and those from Mwenzo on the north, all engaged in the
same task of occupying the vast hinterland, an area of at least
30,000 square miles. In later years parties, guided by Europeans,
penetrated as far as the Chambezi River and beyond.

The appearance of those clean, smart, intelligent Africans
made a deep impression on the villagers and especially on the
younger men ; here was a higher and sweeter type of life than they
had hitherto known, and very soon deputations were on their way
to Livingstonia, asking for permanent schools and teachers. Some
were retained and trained, and by and by went back to be preachers
and teachers in their own villages. It is an interesting fact that the
first baptisms among the Senga people were the fruit of the mis-
sionary efforts of the native Presbyterian Church.

Not to be outdone by the normal students of the Institution,
the apprentices in the Agricultural Department joined together and
sent one of their number out west as a foreign missionary, paying
his wages and food, and taking care of his garden work while he
was absent. He was accompanied by three others from the same
department, whose expenses were shared by the workers in the
other departments.

An unexpected visit to the interior gave the Doctor a new insight
into the conditions there, and led to another important development.
Some trouble arising in the L.M.S. field on Lake Tanganyika, he
was asked by the Directors of the Society in London to proceed to
the district and report on the whole situation. Leave of absence
was granted by the Home Committee, who appointed Dr. Chisholm
of Mwenzo as his companion. Dr. Chisholm was an ideal missionary,
quietly doing a remarkable work among the tribes on the high
plateau between Nyasa and Tanganyika. To Mr. Binnie the
Doctor wrote : " Do you remember saying to me long ago, ' I wish
we could get the right man for the plateau ' ? Well, God gave
us the right man, and the right woman, too. What a splendid
work they have done ; one of the best bits in the Mission — they
won't tell you this, though."

Mwenzo means " heart," and the name is appropriate for, on
one hand, the rivers flow to the east ; on the other, to the west, the
sources of the Chambezi, the head waters of the Congo, being on the
Mission ground. When the Doctor reached the station in May 1905,
he found eighty-one local communicants, took part in ordaining
six to the eldership, and baptized thirty-one adults : nine years
previously Communion had been held for the first time, and all
the Christians were natives from a distance.

THE ROMANCE OF THE WEST 319

The two missionaries proceeded to Tanganyika, visited the
stations of the L.M.S., and went as far west as Luanza, Mr. Dan
Crawford's home, on the west side of Lake Mweru, and Lukonzolwa,
the headquarters of the Congo Free State. One day the Doctor
was introduced by Mr. Crawford to a number of Luban cannibals,
who looked, he thought, somewhat inquisitively at him. They so
deeply interested his carriers that their chief song afterwards on
the road was, " We have been with the people who eat their fellow-
men." " They had intelligent faces," said the Doctor, " and
would make good servants of Christ." On another occasion he
met a native who, when a boy, watched Dr. Livingstone's body
being carried through his village on the march northwards from
Chitambo. He gave an address which, according to Mr. Crawford,
had a sequel. Years after, at a service a convert rose and
said, " There came one day to our Lake a great man who preached
of God, the same one this of whom the rumour has travelled far
into the interior that he alone of all men made water to run up a
steep hill. Well, he spoke to us the words of God, and I forgot all
he said except one line, and that line I shall never forget. Once,
twice, and yet again the Sing'anga said, ' The wages of sin are
death, but the gift of God is eternal life.' "

The tour lasted three months, and Dr. Laws gave his impressions
at length in Aurora. What struck him most was the peaceful
condition of the country. " Ten years ago the tribes were flying at
each other's throats when opportunity offered, to which amputated
hands, noses, ears," lips, and gouged-out eyes still bear witness.
Now, under the rule of the British Central African Administration
and the British South African Company, there is a reign of peace.
It seems hardly believable that a few officials scattered over the
country, each with a handful of native policemen under him, should
be capable of such a task. Still, the fact remains, and not only so,
but we passed at least four centres where formerly Europeans
were stationed, and now the condition of the country is such that
the Europeans could be withdrawn and the section ruled from
more distant centres. All the officials we met showed a lofty sense
of justice, and many of them had a high appreciation of, and were
deeply interested in, the peoples they had to govern, and were
seeking their improvement in many ways. At several of these
places the presence of a European lady changed a lonely station
into a home, and surrounded the place with a new atmosphere of
grace added to strength and forming its complement. Magistrate
and missionary each has his duty to perform in the service of God,

320 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and the combined work of both, helped by legitimate commerce,
is working wonders in the regeneration of Africa."

Another truth borne in upon him was the physical impossibility
of European missionaries overtaking the work that required to
be done and the urgent need for trained native agents. " The
future is full of promise," he concluded. " Africa is for the Church
and the man who can work and pray and wait."

Giving his account of the journey, Dr. Chisholm wrote : " I
was greatly impressed by the immense benefit to the work and
advantage to young missionaries of a man of Dr. Laws' experience
and sagacity paying a visit to each individual station." The
Doctor's endurance was a wonder to the younger man. " Any
friends at home who might have had anxiety as to his being capable
of undertaking an overland journey of 1500 miles would have had
their minds set at rest had they seen him do up to 20 miles' march
in a day, sleep one night out in the open, all night in his machila
with no ill-effects, and be carried in his machila less often than
those who have been three years in the country instead of
thirty."

One result of the trip was the decision on the part of the L.M.S.
and the Garenganze Missions to send pupils for the complete course
of normal instruction at Livingstonia. Seven L.M.S. lads accom-
panied the Doctor, and other nine arrived later along with some
from Luanza. Another result arose out of a stirring appeal by
the Doctor for volunteers to go into the great tracts of unevangelized
country he had witnessed. One party of teachers with their wives
left shortly afterwards for Lake Mweru — a six weeks' journey —
and others followed for Tanganyika. It was an event of the first
importance, for it raised the little community of disciples at Living-
stonia to the rank of a missionary church. When some of the
teachers returned on a visit in 1907 to appeal for more workers
they brought additional lads to be trained and three " stowaways,"
who had trudged the long distance from Luanza to plead that they
might be allowed to work during the day in order to attend the
evening school. " I could not turn them away," said the Doctor.
On another occasion some lads arrived from Kasama, a twenty days'
journey. No one had sent them ; they had heard that an educa-
tional institution existed somewhere on Lake Nyasa, and were
determined to reach it and be taught. They had no money and
all the places were filled, but they were examined and three accepted.
All this demonstrated the value of the educational side of the
Mission as an evangelistic agency. So conspicuous was the success

DARK DAYS 321

attained that it attracted the attention of the German missionaries
and modified the views they held on the question.

The occupation of the west was completed by another move-
ment, which seemed the natural consummation of the growth of
the Mission. The heart of Dr. Livingstone lay buried at Lake
Bangweolo, a region still unoccupied by the forces of the Gospel.
When Mr.Codrington, the Administrator of North-Eastern Rhodesia,
offered the Chitambo district to the Mission with the request that
a medical missionary might be placed there, it was felt to be a
privilege and honour to take possession of it for Christ. Health
reasons precluded the planting of a station at the exact spot where
the explorer died, but a station was opened on high land in the
vicinity, and so Ilala-land, hallowed by poignant associations, came
within the sphere of Livingstonia.

XX. Dark Days

Livingstonia had a genius for drawing the best men into its
service, and the best had their own way of regarding things. They
brought fresh views and advanced them with energy, but, as Dr.
Elmslie once remarked, " New men with new ideas sometimes forget
the past." There was occasional friction, misconception, and
estrangement. " I have no desire to be an autocrat," Laws wrote,
" nor do I practise the functions of one, seeking rather to consult
with my colleagues, but this is made possible only by the recogni-
tion of authority. I find it difficult sometimes to decide when it
is right to interfere with the liberty of those about me. To do so
before there is any wrong done might do more harm than good,
yet freedom easily runs over the borderland into serious evil. I
hope never to lose sympathy with the aspirations of my younger
colleagues, even though a quarter of a century's experience makes
me unable to agree with the rate at which they wish to push ahead,
or the wisdom of doing so. If their enthusiasm sometimes leads
them beyond discretion, the strength of the enemy and a few bruises
will chasten the zeal which it is better to have in superabundance
than to find lacking."

It was not legitimate criticism that hurt him, but the attribu-
tion of motives far from his thoughts and foreign to his character.
There was no man more sincere and selfless in all his activities.
Never once throughout his career had he acted from personal
considerations, but always for the good of the Mission, and he always
preferred to see others advanced than himself ; there was not a
21

322 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

trace of envy or jealousy or any mean quality in his nature. " There
is," he said at this time, " only one Critic whose judgment of our
motives and actions is competent to the uttermost and whose
verdict cannot be challenged : to be enabled to walk humbly in
His service is enough for me."

Though every human being has his limitations, there was much
to be said for the Doctor's attitude. Throughout all these long
years missionaries came and went, but he remained. His experience
was worth much. Dr. Elmslie says that " the success of the work
in Livingstonia is due, under God, to the fact that the mind of Dr-
Laws — one directing mind — has been in it from the beginning."
He had tested every condition, probed the native character to its
depth, knew all the cross-currents of life in the land. Along with
this knowledge went ripe judgment, singleness of aim, utter devotion.
All this made him have faith in his own plans and withstand the
storms that sought to upset things. Against these he stood up
quiet, firm, unflinching ; he did not get angry and fume ; he
might bend again and again, but he always returned to the old
position, and in the end he usually carried his point. The move-
ment of his policy was like that of a glacier, passionless, persistent,
irresistible.

Those who had knowledge of his trials marvelled at his patience
and self-restraint. Some member of the staff in an unguarded
moment would flare up and say words that he afterwards regretted ;
the Doctor would stand looking at him sorrowful and silent, and
never again refer to the matter, nor would it make the slightest
difference in his attitude. " I always try to put myself in the
place of others," he would say. " You never know what is worry-
ing them, and it is the very earnestness of their service that makes
them the more ready to see shortcomings in others." Some would
write passionate letters, and his replies would be couched in calm,
courteous, and conciliatory language. In his correspondence, and
he wrote many thousands of letters, there is not a single unkind
or uncharitable reflection on any of his colleagues — as one said,
they could all be read at the Market Cross ; but there are innumer-
able communications carrying sympathy and cheer, and whatever
counsel he gave was not byway of dictation, but as a help from a
brother who had himself stumbled through many difficulties and
made many mistakes.

In his dark days he had two tried friends to whom he could
always turn for sympathy and comfort. The first was Mr. Fairley
Daly, now the honorary secretary of the Home Committee, who

DARK DAYS 323

conducted the affairs of the Mission with a skill, tact, and un-
wearied devotion of which few outsiders or onlookers had the least
idea. The Doctor's relation to him was notable, for Mr. Daly
was not only his official correspondent but his intimate confidant,
one as kind and helpful as could be wished. The other was Dr.
Hetherwick, of Blantyre, whose long experience of the country,
strong and sagacious character, and attractive personality made him
an ideal head of that great Mission. With him the Doctor could
discuss matters with a freedom and frankness which he could not
do with others. Welcoming Dr. Hetherwick back after furlough
on one occasion, he wrote : " Somehow with old friends there comes
a feeling of restful assurance of an immovableness from tried lines
of action by winds of fashion or caprice that cannot be reposed in
those new to the country."

It was a curious fact that though the missionaries might fall
out with each other inside the Mission circle they were intensely
loyal to one another ; if a single deprecatory word were uttered
against a particular member by outside persons, there was an
instant call to arms and a vigorous defence set up on his behalf.
So that the Doctor's attitude of forbearance, while based on the
teaching of his Master, was also that of a shrewd and philosophic
observer of human nature.

For a time he was in sore trouble over the division of opinion
in the Home Committee in regard to the grant of land for the
Institution. When the survey was finished it was found that the
area gifted in fee-simple and without quit rent, but with mineral
rights reserved, was 196 square miles, or 80 less than that within the
provisional boundaries of 1898. The acquisition of so large a
property alarmed many accustomed to small estates in Scotland,
and they raised the spectres of costly management, rent-rolls, and
tenancy difficulties. One prominent member said that the scheme
would be a huge blunder and disastrous to the Mission. " The
island of Bute contains 49 square miles, Arran 165 ; Dr. Laws wants
us to acquire 300 square miles ! " He charged the Doctor with
wishing to become " a landlord, farmer, grazier, timber merchant,
and water-power speculator." The Doctor repudiated the idea.
" I have no desire," he replied, " to see the estate exploited for
commercial advantage, but I do desire to see it used for the train-
ing of the natives and secured for the benefit of their children. I
do not wish to throw away the opportunity of having for nothing
what we or our successors will have to pay dearly for another
day."

324 LAWS OF L1VINGSTONIA

The objections were based on an insufficient appreciation of
the situation. Long before — when he first went out to Nyasa—
he wrote : " One of the greatest difficulties we encounter is to give
people at home a real conception of our work and its surroundings,
as well as the reasons guiding us to certain lines of action," and it
was the same still. Such a large tract was necessary if the estate
were to be in one compact block, and the arable soil, pasture,
forest timber, water-supply area, and other needs were to be
secured. " If," he said, " I had the making of the geology of the
country, doubtless these could be put into ioo square miles or even
a good deal less, but this is not in my power." Within the original
boundaries there were not 10 square miles suitable for the plough.
He pointed out that the estate would not be developed for decades,
and would at first entail little or no charge for management. " If
we reject God's offer, for to me it is nothing else, I believe we or
our successors will bitterly regret it." But the controversy dragged
on both in Livingstonia and Scotland without any decision being
arrived at.

Another source of anxiety was the financing of the Institution.
There was always the possibility of the income not squaring the
expenditure, and many a black hour he had studying the accounts.
On one occasion the position made him physically sick. " I have
gone without my dinner in days gone by rather than be a penny
in debt, and I have as great a horror of debt for my work here as
I have for personal debt. It is horrible to feel that I am doing
this unless help unknown to me is provided. There is only one
refuge and help, and to our Father I go with the burden." And
he never went in vain, for always when the outlook looked darkest
came the means to tide him over the difficulty. How sensitive his
conscience was concerning money matters may be judged from
the fact that, receiving a newspaper containing inside a New
Zealand bank-note, he communicated with the Postmaster-General
at Zomba and sent a small sum to make up for the amount of
which his correspondent had defrauded the revenue. At this time
he was gravely questioning whether he was not receiving too much
salary for the work he was doing.

Connected with the question of finance was the worry of keeping
up with the office work and especially with the accounts. He was
usually awake before 5 a.m., and after a cup of tea was at his Church
History Class at 6 a.m. With intervals for breakfast and dinner he
was busy until 5 or 6 p.m., and had often a late night at the books
and correspondence. So thorough was he in his methods that once

DARK DAYS 325

" a wretched sevenpence " of difference in a balance-sheet gave
him hours of weary labour. A native clerk was beginning to be
of some assistance, but it was with a sense of relief that he heard
that Mr. T. Cullen Young, C.A., a son of the Rev. Dr. Young,
Home Mission Secretary of the Church, had volunteered as a
business missionary for Livingstonia. He fulfilled the hopes of
the Doctor, who exclaimed, " Would that he had been here two
years past ! " Here is what this expert in figures wrote to the
Committee :

" I am sorry that my first attempt to comply with your request
for an early remittance of accounts should have so completely
failed. I am able now to enter into the difficulties which sur-
rounded the annual balances of the past, and I would like you to
know that I do not see how it could have been made possible for
you to have received such an early remittance of accounts as you
wished. It is only fair that the strain and the worry at this end
■should not be forgotten. To-day I see the work of Dr. Laws,
lessened as it is by relief from the office work, and I wish I could
make it possible for you to realize what one means when one speaks
of it. The additional burden laid upon him in the office was not,
as one had the idea at home, a small matter, and the weight of
it at times must have been far from tolerable. You have no
idea of what the office work here is. Its extent is not in the way
of daily routine so much as in the irregular and multitudinous calls
it made upon the time and thought of one whose work was already
more than should be expected of any one man. The task which
fell to Dr. Laws during these years was one the extent of which
you have never grasped ; indeed, I believe that its extent can
never, and will never, be grasped by any who do not from personal
experience understand the circumstances which obtain in this
country. In the face of all these things I found on my arrival a
complete system of book-keeping with books — not up to date,
certainly, but having data so organized and arranged that it was
a matter of only a few weeks before things were put right."

But perhaps what vexed him most was the stream of moral
disappointments and failures encountered in the course of the
work among the people. Each new case was like a severe blow in
the face. It was not an easy matter to judge when a candidate
was fit for baptism. " Knowledge is essential, but practice is the
test of knowledge," he would say, and it was in the practice that
the weakness showed. With all his experience and knowledge as a
medical man he was yet often surprised anew and sick at heart
at the filth and degradation that welled up from unsuspected
quarters within the borders of the Church. Some of the cases, he

326 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

declared, were " worse than death." It was often the finest minds,
too, that felt temptation the keenest : one of the most promising
boys, who had been the means of bringing not a few to Christ,
succumbed ; he saved others, himself he could not save, and a sin
twice committed ruined the hopes entertained of him. Capable
teachers would be dismissed, and their next appearance was in the
hospital. The Doctor was bitterly distressed, and was haunted by
doubts whether he had done all he could for them. Following
the example of his Master, he dealt compassionately with the
offenders, but was firm in requiring genuine penitence. " I have
never regretted showing leniency in cases of discipline outside the
seventh commandment," he said, " but whenever I have shown it
in case; where that commandment was broken I have regretted it.
It is right to forgive, but to put a man back in the same position
is a different thing. One has to think of the effect it has on
the people. I can compromise, but there are certain matters of
principle on which I am adamant." As he wrote to a preacher
who had sinned and was sitting in sackcloth and ashes : " It is
good that you have repented, but if a man's leg is bitten off by a
crocodile he may be very sorry that he put his leg into the hole
where the crocodile was, but that will not bring back his leg. The
sin you have done may be repented of, but that will not make
people who do not love Christ believe in you or listen to you when
you try to teach the Ten Commandments."

How simply and earnestly he appealed to any who meditated
a departure from the right is shown in the following letter to a
Chief :

" I have a letter from Mr. Stuart, and in it I am told that you
are thinking of taking another wife. Surely this cannot be true,
for you have been taught God's Word and you know His will.
You said you believed in Christ as your Saviour, and promised
that you would obey His Commandments — you surely do not
in end to break your promise — you surely do not intend to sin
against God and grieve the Lord Jesus Christ. If you do this thing
and give up Christianity, you will commit a grievous sin, and instead
of happiness you will find misery. Bad men may laugh with you
and rejoice in getting you to join them in evil, but you will bring
shame on the cause of Christ and His Church. . . . Dear — do stop ;
do not make God angry with you and your people, but repent and
put away that evil from you — I write this in sorrow because I love.
I beseech you to keep to the pure ways of God."

This question of polygamy was one of the vexed problems of

SILVER WEDDING 327

the native church. The Doctor's fundamental position was simple :
" God's ideal of one man one woman for life, and that ideal brought
into practice in the Church at the earliest possible moment with the
least injustice to all concerned."

Some thought he was too hopeful and trustful where the
Christians were concerned, but no one had a clearer vision of all
the elements in the situation. He knew the weakness of the
native and that he could not stand alone ; to give him too much
responsibility was a source of danger. Yet he had to be taught to
stand on his own feet. " Responsibility steadies a man, and with
a Christian wife and a Christian home we need have no undue
fears. We may feel distrust and be disappointed at times, but
God works through imperfect agents ; we must be chary of
limiting the power of the Holy Ghost in Africa. Let us trust
more the Spirit of God to work in and through the native Christian,
a very different thing from trusting the native agent. The devil
is strong, but Christ is stronger."

XXI. Silver Wedding

The silver-wedding day of the Doctor and Mrs. Laws in August
1904 was not forgotten by the staff. A holiday was given to the
pupils and workers, and the Station was decorated. A thanksgiving
service, conducted by Charles Domingo, was held, and at this
Yuraia read an address on behalf of the natives. Then the people
feasted at the Homestead, the Doctor providing two bullocks for
the occasion. The Europeans entertained the Principal and Mrs.
Laws to a dinner in the evening. At the head of the table sat the
Rev. J. S. Moffat, C.M.G., son of Dr. Moffat and brother-in-law of
Dr. Livingstone, who was on a visit to his son in the Mission, and
on the walls hung a tattered white ensign, which had flown on the
Search in 1867 and on the Ilala in 1875, and also the Doctor's blue
flag with the white dove. An illuminated address of affectionate
appreciation, signed by thirty-one Europeans, placed in a casket
of beautifully grained native wood, and a silver table-centre or vase
with African ornamentation, were presented to the Sing'anga and
his lady.

Into the happy atmosphere created by this event came the
disturbing news that the House of Lords had decided against the
United Free Church and that the small minority who had refused
to enter the Union were in possession of the funds and properties
of the Church. With a sense of stupefaction the Mission Council

328 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

met, but there was no dubiety about their attitude. They affirmed
their belief that the Union was of the will of God, and they were
ready to share with their brethren at home whatever might be
involved. " Whether God intends us to carry on the work or means
to entrust it to others," the Doctor said, " our duty is to go quietly
on in the meantime. I only dread lest rancour or malice or evil
thoughts and words should be mixed up with the convictions of
either party to impair the blessing likely to come out of the trouble."
What he instantly thought of was the effect on the Mission.
Livingstonia was like a ship under full sail, and as a wise captain he
always kept a close watch on the weather in order to shorten sail at
the slightest indication of danger. Realizing that the liberality of
supporters would be crippled, he slowed down the rate of building
and delayed other developments. " We shall wait," he said, " until
God sends us the means for anything beyond what is already
promised."

In October he was down at Blantyre at the second Missionary
Conference, which was attended by between fifty and sixty mission-
aries. The Doctor — " the father of us all," as Dr. Hetherwick
affectionately termed him — was elected President. When at a
public meeting he gave an account of British Central Africa
in 1875 almost every European in the district, Protestant and
Roman Catholic alike, listened to what was to them a strange and
fascinating story. Mrs. Laws presided at the section on Women's
Work. During the Conference the Blantyre and Livingstonia
Presbyteries met with a view to uniting in a common Synod.

In 1906 he heard of the illness of Dr. Stewart, and wrote at once
to cheer him with news of the progress of the Mission, which owed
to him its existence and name. His death brought about a serious
loss to Livingstonia, for Mr. Henderson, whose organizing gifts and
exacting ideals had brought up the educational department to a
high pitch of efficiency, was called to fill the post at Lovedale.
His place was taken by the Rev. D. R. Mackenzie, M.A., another of
the statesmanlike men who have devoted their gifts to the Mission.

A new stage in the political evolution of the country was reached
ini907,when it became theNyasaland Protectorate.with a Governor
and Executive and Legislative Councils, the latter including official
and unofficial members nominated by the Crown. Sir Alfred
Sharpe was the first Governor. Dr. Laws was strongly of opinion
that the natives, who formed the great majority of the population
and were now paying something like £31,000 in hut tax, should
have some means of expressing an opinion on public matters and

SILVER WEDDING 329

legislative changes which concerned themselves. This would
bring the responsible class to the side of constitutional government
?.nd peace, and prevent them becoming the prey of demagogues with
a party or racial cry. His idea was some sort of native council,
with limited powers at first, but becoming more liberal as the
experiment was justified by results. He was, as usual, far ahead
of his time, but the absolute wisdom of the proposal was undeniable.
Had South Africa adopted such a policy, the racial position would
not have been as acute as it is to-day, the complete ignoring of the
natives as a factor in the national life being the chief cause of the
menacing situation that has developed there.

When a wish was expressed by the leading members of the
Church at Livingstonia that the natives should meet together in
conference to discuss the special problems in which they were
interested, the Doctor welcomed the idea as in line with his views,
and it was carried into effect, the first meeting being held under the
auspices of the Presbytery and lasting for six days. There was
much that was encouraging in the discussions, the one unsatisfactory
note being that many of the Christians were unsympathetic on the
subject of the position of women. It was still commonly held that
the chief work of the latter was to be the drudge of man.

At this time the Doctor drew up a list of the publications which
had issued from the printing press. Of books of the Bible as
many as 37,310 copies had been turned out ; of miracles and
parables, 4500 ; of Harry's Catechism and similar works, 7200 ;
of school primers in eight languages, 42,000 ; of first, second, and
third readers, 18,000 ; of hymn-books in seven languages, 19,600.

With so many married missionaries now on the Station there
was no lack of young life cheering the lives of the workers. The
children were a great delight to the Doctor, and he was never too
busy or too tired to turn aside for a few moments to talk or play
with them. " Don't apologize," he would say to a mother, as he
gently disengaged a fearless baby's fingers making havoc of his
beard. " You don't know what a pleasure it is to have some one
who does not stand in awe of the crusty Principal."

" I am sure," writes a missionary's wife, " that every mother
who has lived at the Institution will remember days and nights
when she thanked God for the Sing'anga and his healing skill. In
grave crises, when little lives seemed to hang in the balance, one felt,
whenever the Doctor came into the room, as if he were ready to
fight death itself. There were many happy Christmas days at the
Institution when the service was brightened by the presence of the

330 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

white children — the babies as well. Sometimes a little restless
mite would break away from its father or mother and toddle off to
keep the Doctor company at the reading-desk. How the Doctor's
face lighted up as he went on with his Christmas address, his hand
resting lovingly on the little one's head."

On another occasion a little boy moved across to the platform
and climbed up the steps and stood beside him. The Doctor lifted
him up and, holding him with his left arm, pronounced the bene-
diction with the right.

Sometimes there were interruptions which reminded the Doctor
of early days. A lizard once ran across the floor towards the desk,
followed by a snake. The Doctor proceeded, as if unconscious of
their presence ; he let the lizard pass, but as the snake came on
after its prey he lifted his big boot and, without stopping, quietly
and deliberately planted it upon the creature, the fascinated
audience watching its tragic end.

XXII. With Honour Crowned

During the autumn months of 1907 Mr. Daly had been hinting
that the Doctor was to be proposed as Moderator of the General
Assembly of 1908 ; none knew better than he, for he was behind
the movement. The Doctor treated the matter as a pleasantry ;
it was the highest honour the Church could confer on its distin-
guished servants, and he felt he had done nothing to justify it
coming to him. Mr. Fraser, arriving from furlough, confirmed the
report ; he was to be nominated when the Standing Committees
of the Church met in November. He was much perturbed. " I
have no ambition to be Moderator," he said. " If the Church lays
her commands on me I shall be forced to face the possibility, but
I shrink from it."

The Committees met on 19th November ; he ought, if he were
chosen, to receive the customary cablegram asking him to accept
on the 20th. When that day passed he felt unutterable relief.
" Some other one," he thought, " more worthy of the honour and
better fitted to fill the position has been selected." As the days
came and went without the silence being broken he dismissed the
subject from his mind. On the 29th he was on his rounds of the
Station when the black telegraph boy handed him a telegram :
" Unanimously nominated Moderator ; wire acceptance." Dis-
patched on the 19th, the message had been delayed ten days on the
way. He had been proposed by Dr. George Robson, editor of the

WITH HONOUR CROWNED 331

Missionary Record, who said the practice of electing a former Free
and United Presbyterian minister alternately should cease, and
there could be no better way of inaugurating the new system than
by nominating one who represented both and was twenty-five years
older than any of them as a United Free Churchman.

The Doctor's heart sank ; he had no relish for the position
and the publicity and stir which it involved. What influenced him
was the thought that it was a recognition, not so much of his
individual service as of the work of the whole Livingstonia staff,
and in this spirit he cabled back, " Obediently accept nomination,"
and determined to use the great opportunity given to him to further
the general mission cause of Christ.

All who loved that cause rejoiced that the first missionary-
Moderator of the united Church was to be the pioneer of Living-
stonia. Of the congratulations that poured in upon him there were
few he valued more than those from his own colleagues. The
Council, the Presbytery, the missionaries, his native friends, all
expressed their delight at the honour conferred upon him. Dr.
Elmslie's letter gave him " dim eyes." Commenting on it, he
wrote : " Human friendship, Christian human friendship, is one
of the greatest gifts God has given His people, and the expression
of it while they are on earth and in need of it is more valuable
than ten canonizations of them when they are safely out of the
way in heaven."

The feeling amongst the natives may be gauged by the following
extract from a letter sent to Scotland by a bursar :

" We are hearing that Dr. Laws is coming there (going home), and will
stay for two years. We wish him to see his friends and perhaps rest for a
short time, but on the other hand we do not wish him to stay in Scotland.
We shall be very sorry to lose him. If we knew that he is to stay there
without coming here I am sure our chiefs will say that you had better bring
us there too with our children. The whole of our land will weep and catch
him and stop his loads going. We wish him to be buried here, and Mrs.
Laws also. We wish to bury them ourselves. They have been given to
us by God. They are not Europeans now, they are Africans. Our fathers
and Dr. Laws tell us of things thirty years ago in this country. We do not
call him Dr. Laws, but ' Our father.' "

The Doctor was a child in all matters relating to the Moderator-
ship, but Mr. Daly was the kindest of counsellors, while others like
Mr. (now Sir) R. R. Simpson, Depute Clerk of the Assembly, and
Dr. Robson also rallied to his aid, and everything was done to
ease his path in so generous and considerate a way that he felt
ashamed and humbled.

332 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

One question that agitated a number of his friends was whether
he would wear the traditional robes of office. A predecessor, Dr.
Hutton, a foe to all State associations, had not done so, and it was
thought that the Doctor, being a former United Presbyterian and a
plain man, would follow his example. One person was so distressed
that he wrote to the Doctor saying that if he did not wear the
breeches and lace he saw nothing for it but to go over to the
Episcopal Church. " Poor creature," was the Doctor's comment.
" What about the clothes of the Carpenter of Nazareth ? " He
never cared a straw for public opinion so far as he was person-
ally concerned, but in this as in all other matters he subordinated
his own feelings and desires to the course which would best further
his Master's kingdom. Not to wear the Court dress he thought
might emphasize the difference between the Church of Scotland
and his own Church, and needlessly irritate members of the former
communion. In the case of Dr. Hutton, whose views were so
well known and who was so greatly honoured, no offence was taken,
but it might be otherwise with him. " I am at the service of the
Church," he said, " in these trifles as in things of greater importance,
and cannot consider my own inclinations, and so I shall wear the
historic dress." Glasgow and Aberdeen wished to give him the
robes, but Livingstonia claimed the right, and at the meeting of
the first native Conference the presentation was made. His chief
pleasure in wearing them lay in the fact that they were largely the
gift of those he loved and had sought to seive in Central Africa.

When he was on the point of leaving Livingstonia he learnt that
the name of Dr. Mackichan, the distinguished Indian missionary,
had also been before the Committee, and he wrote to him at once
expressing his great regret that he had not been elected, adding
that he had once suggested him when the question of a missionary
Moderator was under consideration. Dr. Mackichan replied in a
most generous spirit, and no one rejoiced more than Dr. Laws
when, in later years, he also was called to the Moderator's chair.

The Doctor and Mrs. Laws sailed from Florence Bay in January
1908, no longer in the Ilala, which had been sold, taken to pieces,
conveyed to Chinde, and refitted for service there — to sink later in
the river where she now lies. On this occasion he left, throughout
the whole Mission, 8 central stations, 43 European missionaries,
9 native congregations and 3 licentiates, 4500 communicants, 30,000
under instruction, 500 schools, 1000 qualified teachers, 53,000
scholars, and a native community of 14,000.

At Blantyre he attended a conference on education with the

WITH HONOUR CROWNED 333

Government, which now agreed to give a small grant of £1000 to
assist the school work of the Missions. It was distributed on some-
what rough-and-ready lines, based on the returns of the Missions,
which were willing to accept aid, and amounted to less than two-
pence per scholar as contrasted with a similar grant of fifteen
shillings per pupil in Cape Colony. It was less than a tenth of that
provided by the Missions themselves.

One day came the startling telegraphic news of the death of
Lord Overtoun, from whom the Doctor had just received a letter
in which he said he was looking forward with joy and pride to seeing
him in the Moderator's chair. The sense of personal bereavement
and of the loss of interest and sympathy and guidance which the
event involved was overwhelming. " He understood me as few
men have ever done," wrote the Doctor, " and I thank God as
many will for the memory of his friendship and the power of his
example. He taught me to trust God more fully and know Him
better than any other had been able to do." Then came the
realization of what the withdrawal of this great Christian force
would mean to the Mission — lower income, fewer reinforcements,
abandoned work. Lord Overtoun had given £50,000 in one way
or another to the work ; he was paying nearly £1000 per annum
in salaries and as much again for buildings, and the Doctor had a
vision of cables being dispatched to Livingstonia ordering con-
struction to cease — which was actually the case. But his faith
rose superior to the blow. " God raised up one steward and He
can raise up others. We must trust Him, dark though it is, and
we cannot see our way." Lady Overtoun, brave in her sorrow,
wrote to him : " I think God took him because too man}'' depended
on him and not on God. We all leant too much on him, and he
was worn out." One result of the crisis, the Doctor believed, would
be the proposal to unite the Livingstonia Committee with the
General Foreign Mission Committee of the Church, which, in his
view, must sooner or later come.

From the coast he proceeded north, and arrived at Naples to
see snow on the hills and cherry and apple trees in bloom on the
shores. Dr. Gordon Gray, who had long been in charge of the
work at Rome, came on board with Amy, now grown up, bright,
attractive, and capable, with a fluent command of French, German,
and Italian. After a visit to Pompeii they went on to Rome, where
Miss Gray received them. It was the happiest of family reunions.
" I never understood before," said the Doctor, " what Bethany
was to our Lord."

334 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

XXIII. Moderator's Year

The General Assembly of the United Free Church of Scotland
consists of a thousand ministers and laymen, who meet in Edinburgh
for a week in May. It is the chief Church event of the year, and
the proceedings excite keen interest. The Moderator, who presides
over the deliberations of the members, is naturally its most con-
spicuous figure, though he has little to do with the actual directing
of affairs, which is in the hands of experienced officials and leaders.
In introducing the Doctor, his predecessor, Dr. M'Crie, remarked
humorously that on this occasion the Assembly would be well
ordered and peaceful since it was under the reign of " Laws."

The Doctor's opening address was the finest he ever gave,
well balanced, lofty in tone, pervaded with the historic sense, of
wide breadth of interest, and thoroughly practical in suggestion.
It focused the thoughts of the Assembly on the tremendous
function of the Church as the most potent force in the world.

He felt much calmer than he expected ; prayer, he was sure,
was being offered for him, for never in his life had he been more
sustained. He was right. Away in Livingstonia the missionaries
were praying that he might be strengthened. At Blantyre Dr.
Hetherwick and his staff were remembering him. " God bless
them all for it," he wrote out when he heard of it. " After this
experience I shall face anything backed by such love and prayer."

He fulfilled all his duties with a quiet and simple dignity. The
impression he made was that of a modest and unassertive man who
made no pretence to oratory and spoke with direct earnestness ;
but to thoughtful observers there was that about him which sug-
gested a strong and resolute will and immense reserve stores of
purpose and power.

It proved to be an historic Assembly. A communication from
the Church of Scotland was read, seeking conference with the
United Free Church with a view to ultimate union, a matter in
which the Doctor was deeply interested. One of the letters he
had received contained the advice, " Speak little from the chair,
pray much in it." While Dr. Henderson was making his great
plea in favour of conference, one of the many notable utterances
of that ecclesiastical statesman, the Moderator was in spirit bowing
in supplication before God, asking that Divine guidance and wisdom
might be vouchsafed to the speaker, and he said afterwards, " The
loving Father heard and answered." When Dr. Henderson's
motion was carried, Dr. Cameron Lees, one of the leading men of

MODERATOR'S YEAR 335

the Church of Scotland, came hurrying up to Laws, wrung his
hand, and said, " I thank God for this." It was the beginning of
that long series of negotiations which is apparently to culminate
in a united Christian Scotland.

The crowning interest of the week for the Doctor lay in the
missionary meeting, always an inspiring gathering, but doubly so
with a missionary Moderator in the chair. In his address to the
outgoing missionaries he mingled the spiritual and practical notes
in his characteristic way, but it was not without reason that he
urged them to learn what had been already done in the field, and
not criticize too hastily the methods they found in existence. " I
was struck," says one who heard him, " with the straightforward
and almost severe simplicity of his concluding testimony — ' After
thirty-three years of a rough-and-tumble experience, which I hope
it will never be your lot to know, I can only say that if I had my
choice, and even knowing what was before me, I would go forth
to-day to the missionary field.' "

His reception was attended by many distinguished persons,
including Mr. Lloyd George, who was then Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer. There was also another Chancellor of the Exchequer
present, specially invited by himself, who, he whimsically remarked,
was much the more remarkable of the two and far more economical
in method — Mrs. Smith, his old landlady in Edinburgh, who had
been so careful in the management of his meagre resources when he
was a student at the Divinity Hall.

On the Sunday, afternoon he addressed a meeting for men.
" I speak to you," he said, " as a working man." The idea that
workmen had no place in the Church he characterized as sheer
humbug, pointing to the position of Christ and the views He held.
He always maintained that Christ was a Socialist, though His
method of attaining the desired goal was quite opposite to those
of the modern Socialist. He used to illustrate the position thus :
" The modern Socialist says, ' A has more land or other property
than myself (B), C, and D, therefore let us strip A of his extra
possessions and make B, C, and D equal with A ' ; on the other
hand, Christ says to A, ' You have much, you see B, C, and D need
help, therefore share with them.' "

When the Assembly met for its final sitting it was his painful
duty to announce the death of Principal Hutton, one of the great
stalwarts of the Church, for whom he had a warm affection. His
closing address dealt with the question of Union. " Although," as
one said, "the passion of his life-work was not only his master passion,

336 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

but his only one, he almost forgot Africa for a time, and stated
the case for Union with statesmanlike wisdom." Many of them,
he declared, would yet see it consummated. It was God's purpose
and will for the Church.

Although the Moderator is only chairman or president of the
General Assembly for the time being, he is commonly regarded as
the representative head of the Church as a whole, and his year of
office is filled with a continuous round of public engagements. In
view of the strenuous months lying before him, the Doctor and
Mrs. Laws spent July and August at Pontresina, Switzerland,
where Dr. Gray conducted services in summer ; it was the longest
holiday he had enjoyed in his life.

On his return he travelled up and down the country, giving one
or two addresses practically every day. He had heard in Living-
stonia of a poor girl who had relinquished tea and sugar in order
to give the money to the Mission. Addressing a children's meeting
in Perth, he referred to this act of self-denial. When he finished,
the minister said, pointing to a girl in the audience, " There's your
lassie, Doctor." When he spoke to her, she told him that her
grandmother, who was over ninety, was eager to see the Moderator,
but was unable to walk. " Then," he said, " I'll go and see her,"
and proceeded in his robes to the house. The old lady was over-
whelmed by the honour conferred upon her, but what most took
her feminine fancy was the lace ! At Lanark he made kindly
inquiries after the church officer who had rebuked him when a
student, but was told that he had died some years before. Coming
out of a meeting one night he heard two girls discussing him.
" Ay," declared one, " he's seen a bit o' the world, yon yin ! "

He found a fresh force at work in Church life, the eager, insurgent
spirit of youth, applying new methods and creating a fresh interest
in missions ; and from all he saw he gained renewed hope. " I
have no fear," he said, " of the foreign mission cause not being
supported in the future."

He told the National Bible Society what they were doing to
civilize Africa, and what the people thought of it. " A labourer's
wage is one penny or a penny-halfpenny per day. Well, one native
congregation sent £10 for your Society ; another £5. A labourer's
wage in this country is 2s. 6d. a day at least ; multiply your £10
by twenty and you have £200 — that is the real measure of the
African gift, and helps you to understand the sacrifice and gratitude
behind it."

Asked by the Senatus of Glasgow United Free Church College

The Manse on the Edge of the Plateau

Another View, showing the Lake and the weird Evening Effect (p. 361)

The Industrial Block
at the Institution

The Doctor's Plan of Karonga Church
This is a specimen of his skill as an architect

5
90

A

Ngoni

War-Dance

OF

'I III'

PRESEN I'

Day

MODERATOR'S YEAR 337

to give some help in carrying on the work of the late Dr. Hislop's
chair, he lectured to the students of the fourth year ; and in addition
to preaching in the College Chapel, Aberdeen, he delivered one of
the Murtle Lectures, taking as his subject, " The Problem of the
Evangelization of Central Africa," in which he dealt with the
social conditions of the natives and the policies involved in educat-
ing and training them. Again appointed to the Pan-Presbyterian
Council, he travelled to America in 1909. Here he met a lady who
supported six missionaries ; on being teased about wearing an old
hat, she said she could not afford a new one as she wished a new
missionary ! A visit to the Y.M.C.A. conference at Northfield
made Livingstonia widely known amongst the members of that
movement.

His correspondence during these months formed a curious
medley of communications from distinguished men and business
firms and cranks. He could not reply to all, but answered every
reasonable request. One asked a message for the collectors for
the Central Fund. " With all my heart," he wrote, " for they are
rendering a magnificent service to the Church of Christ. I often
think of the ideal collector punctually going her round, through
sunshine and rain, with tactful earnestness and gentleness doing
her work, representing the Master Himself, as she goes about among
the people receiving the freewill offerings of their love to Him."

Now and again came a letter which cheered him. He was
always excessively modest about his influence upon others ; his
conscience would allow him to point only to two or three whom he
had been the means of bringing to Christ in his lifetime, and when,
therefore, a well-known Indian statesman wrote and told him of
the power he had exercised in his life, he was a humbled but grateful
man. " Such acknowledgments," he said, " are like a cup of
cold water to parched lips."

Dr. Ballantyne got him to sign his name in his " Missionaries'
Wish Book." What he put down was, " The Regions Beyond

— I'll try." Underneath comes the words, " Margaret Laws

I'll help."

His chief concern, however, was for Livingstonia. Through

the exertions of Mr. Binnie, — now the convener of the Committee,

Mr. Daly, and others, sufficient funds were secured to tide over the
difficulty caused by the death of Lord Overtoun, but the future
had to be faced. He was asked what stations could be given up.
" None;" he replied ; "we need more." " What work could
be dropped at the Institution ? " " None. Let us not lower its
22

338 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

ideal," he pleaded. " We must not have a parochial idea of its
destiny. It ought to stand for the highest education in Central
Africa. To lower our flag would be to spell defeat."

Nevertheless, considerable reduction was effected throughout
the field, and he was forced back on his old conclusion that the
final remedy for shortage of funds was to develop a native self-
supporting Church.

The question of the size of the estate was thoroughly discussed
between him and the Committee, who came to see the force of his
arguments, and after prolonged consideration agreed to sanction
the acceptance of an area of 164 square miles. But that did not
finish the matter. A correspondence followed with the British
South Africa Company, which added to the complications of the
situation and to the Doctor's anxieties, but he continued to be
upheld by the conviction that what God meant them to have they
would obtain in due time.

The proposal to amalgamate the work of the Committee and
the Church Committee was, as he foresaw, made, and he was asked
to submit his views, which he did in a long statement. He believed
the Mission could still stand alone, but the mind of the Church as a
whole was the deciding factor, and as far as he could judge, the
desire was to solidify all the foreign mission work. This work
and all the home work as well, he maintained, would not be ade-
quately done until the apostolic plan of weekly giving was adopted,
and he suggested that a collecting-book should be used, having a
column for foreign missions and one for congregational and general
purposes, thus anticipating the principle of the weekly freewill
offering scheme which came later into wide favour. The Foreign
Mission Committee, however, could not then, with all its other
great responsibilities, undertake this fresh burden, and the amal-
gamation was postponed, though arrangements were made for
securing the necessary support for the work in Livingstonia.

Adding to his other activities, he spent three months in bringing
his medical knowledge up to date in view of the work at the new
Hospital, taking a post-graduate vacation course at the University
of Edinburgh, the classes including pathological bacteriology,
tropical diseases, medical entomology and protozoology, and
public health. This involved an attendance from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.,
with an occasional hour in the evening. For the coming hospital
he secured the services of Miss E. B. Cole, assistant matron at the
Glasgow Western Infirmary. His purchases on this furlough
included two polled Angus bulls, a fire-hose, a Pelton wheel, glass,

THE AWESOME HOSPITAL 339

paints and oils, and endless ironmongery and engineering supplies.
The Pelton wheel was for the sawmill : it proved its efficiency by
doing more work in a day than had been done in a week.

Edinburgh was in the midst of preparations for the Missionary
Conference of 1910 when he and Mrs. Laws left in December. They
proceeded by the eastern route and spent a time at Rome. To
Lord Shaw the Doctor wrote his impressions of Italy, drawing a
sad and gloomy picture of ecclesiastical impotency and low social
morality. What amazed him was the fact that nearly all the
women of the working class carried knives for protection. " There
is more honesty and purity on the west side of Nyasa," he said,
" than there is in Rome."

XXIV. The Awesome Hospital

It was a new experience for the Doctor to whirl up from the
lower Shire round the Cataract hills to Blantyre in a railway train.
The track had recently been opened, the first link of that continuous
line which was to connect Cape Town with Lake Nyasa.

To his sorrow he came across Charles Domingo, who, in his
ambition and folly, had left Ngoniland and become mixed in some
degree with the Ethiopian movement. This had been introduced
by the Joseph Booth who had heard the Doctor at Cape Town,
and had carried out his intention of visiting the country. He had
projected a scheme for an industrial mission, which for a time had
official favour, and .had enticed a number of teachers from their
allegiance to the Livingstonia Mission. But his teaching intro-
duced that spirit of racial antagonism which, guided by undisciplined
and pushing natives, always becomes subversive of orderly condi-
tions, and he was deported. He took one of his disciples named
Chilembwe, a Yao, to America and had him educated at a negro
college, where he was ordained after three years' study. Returning
to Nyasaland he carried on the same kind of propaganda, recruiting
followers from the class of men with a grievance or those under
discipline by the Missions.

It was with Chilembwe that Domingo had dealings, but he never
seems to have agreed with his extreme views, and when the Doctor
met him he had broken with the sect, though his position was still
dubious. He was ill, and the Doctor prescribed for him. Soon
afterwards he endeavoured to obtain a footing on the Lake shore,
but the Chiefs hinted that his presence was not agreeable, and he
made again for Ngoniland, where he established a pretentious

34o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

mud church, the pulpit and pews being of the same material, and
gathered a following, his influence, unlike Chilembwe's, being
for good.

The blow sustained by this defection was softened to the Doctor
when he arrived at Bandawe\ Here he conducted a Communion
service, at which 1643 natives sat down at the Table — a contrast
to that early scene when he baptized the first local convert. He
still bulked largely in the imagination of the people : the Chiefs
did him reverence, addressing him by half a dozen names of honour
before opening the conversation, and they were garrulous with
reminiscence. At a post-Communion service an elder told how he
had been a slave and had been sold and resold some half-dozen
times for a basketful of cassava and an eagle's plume and head-
dress ; on one occasion he had been given as a pledge for a debt.
Then hearing of the settlement of the Mission at Bandawe, he fled
from his owner and reached the Station, where he heard Dr. Laws
preaching on Isaiah lxv. 25, and urging the people to open their
hearts to the love of God, which would put an end to war among
the tribes. " ' Put your faith in God,' " the Sing'anga said, " ' obey
His word, and the leopard shall yet lie down with the lamb and the
kid in the same kraal in peace. In my heart I said, ' White man,
you lie ! ' And yet, what do I see now ? The leopard and the
lamb together at peace, indeed. Ngoni and Tonga here at the
same Communion table ! "

The " wine " used at Communion, it may be stated, was juice
made from oranges, lemons, or other fruits : in the absence of these
at some remote out-station a tin of jam might be opened and the
preserve mixed with water and strained — " and," added the Doctor,
when mentioning the fact, " the Master's presence on these occasions
could not be denied."

At Livingstonia the Doctor's chief work was to continue and
complete the David Gordon Memorial Hospital, which had been
begun in his absence. Yuraia, now the oldest native member
of the Station, gave a speech on this occasion, saying they had
ceased to wonder at the successive developments at the Institution
and " were prepared for anything." The site was on the edge
of the plateau, where the wards were swept by the fresh winds
from the Lake. Constructed of terra-cotta brick, it was the finest
block of buildings so far erected. The administration and out-
patient department occupied the centre. It contained a hall
where services were held in the morning with all who were present,
two laboratory rooms where microscopic and research work was

THE AWESOME HOSPITAL 341

done, a dispensary and two consulting rooms, one of which was
specially fitted for ophthalmic operations. At the back, and con-
nected by a covered way, was the operating theatre, with a " re-
covery " room, and a sterilizing apartment with stores.

On the north side was the men's pavilion, a large, general ward,
a small ward for special cases, a duty room for native nurses, and
storerooms. On the south was the women's pavilion, a duplicate
of the other. All the buildings had water supply, drain pipes,
electric lighting, cement walls coated with green enamel, and
cement floors, and the operating theatre had also electric heating.

The opening ceremony took place in August 1911, the
Governor, Sir William Manning, and Lady Manning being present.
The latter turned the key, and was presented with a bouquet by
the little daughter of Yuraia. Sir William declared the Hospital to
be the best in East Africa north of the Zambezi, and paid a tribute
to the Misses Gordon, whose beneficence had so greatly augmented
the value of the Mission as a healing force in the country. He was
keenly interested in all the work. When in the book stores, the
Doctor remarked that during the past year they had sold 12 cwt.
of writing paper and 30,000 envelopes to the natives, and this
brought the statement from the Governor that while in Somililand
he was told by the postmaster that more letters came to the two
battalions of the Central African (Nyasaland) Rifles than to the
other regiments. He visited the evening school where those who
had been at work all day were trying to improve themselves at
night. " It is hard, uphill work for many of them," said the Doctor,
" and their dogged perseverance is surprising, though the progress
is slow and the results by no means brilliant." The Governor
was so much impressed that he there and then offered an annual
prize to the best scholar.

Next morning he was up at dawn. " I wish to see everything,"
he said, and all day he was inspecting the various centres of interest
spread over many miles of country, and left with an increased
admiration for the Doctor's gifts. " I'll need," he said laughingly,
" to give my Director of Public Works a holiday in order to come
here and see how you do things ! " The Doctor, with his usual
directness, replied, " It has been God's doing, and to Him is due
all the praise. I am glad to have been allowed to do a little for the
uplifting of the people."

The Hospital proved rather awesome to the patients at first.
They looked round the large, airy ward and were afraid they would
die of cold : they examined the neat, iron beds and wondered how

342 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

to use them : some were found sitting on their haunches on the
edge, while others were on the floor, which they preferred to the
wire mattress. To the women the spotless cleanliness was very
trying. It was a woman living a life of pain and misery who
was the first patient taken to the operating theatre — a case of
amputation of the right leg : the Doctor's prayer was that the result
might be the best possible, and it was. The woman was fitted with
a wooden limb, and went back happy to hoe her garden at Ban-
dawe. Soon the wonders of the Hospital were noised abroad, and
every bed was occupied. One man walked more than ioo miles
from German territory to be treated in it. Many thousands of
patients each year heard of the love of Christ for the first time at
the short service or at morning and evening worship conducted by
the native assistant.

The senior native nurse was Maria, a woman with a history.
Her parents had been killed in a war raid, and later she herself
was made captive and sold. On reaching Livingstonia she attended
the evening class and learned to read, and although not clever, had
a gift for nursing, and was taken into the Hospital. She was a
signal example of what native women could attain to in skill, self-
denial, patience, and devotion to duty. Her death not long after
the new building was opened was a real loss to the Mission.

The Doctor's medical work was not limited to the Hospital.
He was still at the call of any European who needed his services,
and many a night he travelled in drenching rain, pushing on through
flooded rivers and swamps in the dark, to reach some urgent case.

Before any one of his schemes was finished the Doctor's fertile
mind was planning more. There stretched before him at this time
a long line of prospective building work — mortuary, hospital kitchen,
laundry, a house for a European nurse and patients, educational
buildings, girls' dormitories, and last, but perhaps greatest of all, a
church.

He attend d another Missionary Conference held at Mvera,
the principal station of the Dutch Reformed Church Mission, at
which seventy-two European workers were present, representing
eight societies — a remarkable gathering for Central Africa. Dr.
Hetherwick was president on this occasion , which was notable for the
strong feeling expressed regarding the growth of Mohammedanism
in Nyasaland ; it was looked upon not merely as a religious but a
political danger, of which the Government seemed content to be
oblivious. One interesting fact brought out was that the native
women were alive to the different attitudes of Islam and Christianity

THE AWESOME HOSPITAL 343

towards their sex, and always pleaded in favour of Christian schools.
During the Conference the Blantyre and Livingstonia Presbyteries
decided to unite in one Synod of a common Church, to be called the
Church of Central Africa, Presbyterian, with the Apostles' Creed
as the credal base for members.

Travelling back by road to the north, the Doctor was saddened
by an experience at Kasungu. An early convert at Bandawe and
one of the best had been Noa, who grew into a devoted Christian
and became a teacher and then an elder, and went on to the Over-
toun Institution for the evangelists' course. As a foreign missionary
of the Bandawe Church he proceeded to the Marambo, where he
did good work. Turning ill, he was conveyed to Kasungu Hospital,
and Dr. Prentice diagnosed the case to be one of sleeping sickness,
that dreaded scourge which the medical missionaries were doing
their best to keep out of the country. Instead of attending the
Conference, Dr. Prentice stayed by Noa. When Dr. Laws arrived,
he was asked to tell the patient the fatal nature of his illness and
to administer the Communion. Noa was regarded as a martyr to
the Government policy of game protection. " Game," declared
Dr. Prentice, " bring tsetse. Tsetse carries the trypanosome.
Trypanosomes produce sleeping sickness. Clear out the game and
you clear out the tsetse." Long before, Dr. Livingstone had taken
the same view. " The destruction of all game by the advance of
civilization," he wrote, " is the only chance of getting rid of the
tsetse." The Livingstonia Committee repeatedly pressed this view
on the Home Government, and it was with great satisfaction that
they and the missionaries heard of the appointment of an Imperial
Government Commission to Nyasaland to investigate the causa-
tion of the disease, and that Sir David Bruce was at its head. Sir
David's conclusion coincided with that of the medical missionaries.

Another Bandawe death which touched the Doctor closely was
that of Stefano Kaunda, originally an unlikely little slave boy,
who had become a hospital assistant and elder, and one of the most
loved and trusted of Christian leaders in the district. It was the
lives of such men as Noa and Stefano that proved the power of the
Gospel and justified the work of the Mission.

A new element in the approach of the native mind was intro-
duced by the visit of the Rev. Charles Inwood, a delegate from
the Keswick Mission Council.

Though the Doctor had far more faith in the daily spade-work
method of instruction than spasmodic efforts, he welcomed the
visit. " We have each our own work to do according to the talent

344 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

or half -talent God has given us, and the use of all is required for the
regeneration of Africa." His one anxiety was to prevent the feeling
aroused passing into excitement. " I do not seek to limit the
Spirit's work or dictate His m ;de of operation ; at the same time
we have to be very careful lest under the guise of the Spirit's work
the devil executes his designs. When the natives of a country
are under the spell of emotion, especially in large numbers, their
utterances are little worth till tested by time, and that test ha; too
often proved sadly disappointing. Emotion has its place in the
life of the Church, but for our people it is the place of gunpowder,
and to be carefully handled."

The convention at Livingstonia was held under a grass shade
covering 4000 people, many of whom came a three days' march
to be present at the meeting. When Mr. Inwood, who also dis
couraged untimely demonstrations, began to pray, whole rows of
men went down on their faces like swathes of mown hay. Sobs
began to break out. In an instant the Doctor was on his feet,
gripped a teacher who was losing control of himself, and sternly
ordered him to quieten the others. This was effectual, and the
meetings passed off well and deepened the spiritual life of the
Station. So afraid were some of the heathen of being moved to
a changed life that they would not attend.

XXV. Legislator

Sir William Manning paid another visit to Livingstonia in 1912,
;vhen he presented the Governor's prize to the best scholar, and
told how many great men had begun life by attending an evening
school. " By hard and steady work," he assured them, " you can
do much for Nyasaland." " Such a personal touch," said the
Doctor, " has a wonderful influence on the African, who is concrete
to a fault and prefers a man to an abstraction of Government."

Sir William asked the Doctor to become a nominated member
of the Legislative Council in succession to Dr. Hetherwick, but he
had no ambition or liking or time for political work, and tried to
pass on the honour to others, and then definitely declined. The
Governor pressed the point, and the Doctor said he would ask for
orders from the Home Committee, who, needless to say, cabled their
approval of his accepting office. In November he was formally
appointed, and began to attend the meetings at Zomba. The chief
service he rendered was in connection with a Medical Practitioners
Bill, which admitted Indian students of various grades to practise

LEGISLATOR 345

in Nyasaland but took no account of natives, some of whom had
obtained as good a training. The Doctor opposed the measure, and
only agreed to it when he received an assurance that a new Bill
of wider scope would be introduced. Along with Dr. Hetherwick,
he conferred on the subject with the Government medical men ;
and also with the new Governor — Sir George Smith — who agreed in
principle with the proposals and promised to pay Livingstonia
a visit and inspect the Hospital.

At Blantyre he met Dr. Norman Maclean, a distinguished
minister of the Church of Scotland, who published a series of vivid
impressions of Nyasaland in Africa in Transformation, a book
which caused not a little fluttering in certain circles and much
quiet amusement to Dr. Laws, who had to smooth down some of
the ruffled feeling. " From Dr. Laws, that greatest missionary of
our day in Africa," Dr. Maclean wrote, " I heard tales of derring-do
which stirred the blood — and his tales were all of others. As one
listened to him, it was as if one were face to face with one of the
great men of old who brought nations into the Kingdom of God. . . .
He is a man who knew no fear, who accepted no discouragement,
who acquiesced in no defeat." The two walked together to the
church at Zomba, and as Laws glanced at the crowd of white-clad
natives waiting on the grass, he remarked, " There is more cloth
round this church to-day than there was in the whole country
when I came to it." Dr. Maclean went on to Livingstonia, the
seat, he said, " of the true Bishop of Central Africa, the father of
the white men," and gave a picturesque account of the activities
of the Station.

The Doctor had often wondered why his own Church did not send
out a deputy ; in his closing address to the General Assembly he had
referred to the value of such a visit. He endeavoured to lure out
one correspondent by pictures of wild life — " Elephants are getting
scarce, but you can still see a hippo or two, and a lion was roaring
down below our house last week after killing an ox for supper."
Through the liberality of a notable friend to missions, a deputy in the
person of the Rev. T. M. Napier, B.D., was sent out, and brought
an alert and sympathetic m'nd to bear on all he saw.

News of mingled sadness and gladness came from Scotland.
Mr. Binnie, the Convener of the Committee, often a critic of the
Doctor's policy, but kind and helpful, died ; his successor was
Mr. F. L. M. Moir, of all men the right one for the post : then the
question of occupying the far hinterland was settled through the
aid of a legacy left by Mr. Peter Mackinnon and the generous

346 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

offer of the Rhodesian Administration to grant land at Chitambo.
But what thrilled the Mission was the intimation that Dr. Hubert
Livingstone Wilson and his sister, grandson and granddaughter of
Dr. Livingstone, were coming out to help in redeeming the land
for which the great missionary explorer died.

The land question continued to cast its shadow ovei the Doctor's
life, the propo ^ition now being that the total area should be reduo d
to 38 square miles. He had again to enter the lists, and in his
quiet, persevering, resolute way fight for his ideal. " I may be a
heretic, but I cannot see why we should give up land for which we
have provisional titles." He refused to do it. " Were I to agree,
I would feel myself a traitor to the children of the country for whose
education this is the only reserve." When asked why he wanted
to keep so much worthless land, he replied, reasonably enough, " the
so-called worthless land was worth a good deal, since it prevented
the good land being rendered worthless by the natives cutting down
the bush and trees."

When the end of the long dispute came, it was of the nature of a
compromise. It was decided to accept 50,000 acres in five distinct
blocks : the Institution block contained 37,226 acres, and the next
largest, 7598 acres, was in the fertile Henga valley. This meant
roughly 80 square miles instead of the minimum 100 which the
Doctor desired, and though he lost positions which he would have
liked to have retained, the roads, water-area, waterfalls, and strip
of shore were safe. But it was not until 1921 that the transfer
was finally ratified and the titles secured — twenty-seven years
after the Doctor had, in faith, taken possession of the land for his
Master.

The Livingstone Centenaiy in 1913 was celebrated throughout
the Mission. At the Institution Yuraia spoke of the safety and
peace of the country compared with the former days, when " no
man could go from one village to another unarmed and no woman
without an armed escort." At Bandawe four aged men, repre-
sentative of Old Africa, gave reminiscences of Dr. Livingstone's
visit to the spot ; they called him the " channel cutter," the name
given to the rains, then falling, which clear the watercourses for the
floods that follow. One spoke of the cheer brought into their lives
by Dr. Laws. " ' Yes,' the Sing'anga used to say, ' war is thick
about you, but it will not last for ever. You must pray to God
about it, and you will see what will happen.' ' The white man
lies,' said we. ' No, it is not lies,' cried the Sing'anga. And now
look here to-day, my heart warms. Jesus has been life to us."

HIGH-WATER MARK 347

Fuka, describing the red days of Ngoni slaughter, said, " We hoed
our gardens in the strength of Dotolozi."

XXVI. High-Water Mark

The year 1914 witnessed the high-water mark of the Doctor's
effort and achievement. At long last the three natives who had
been on probation were ready for the ministry. His hopes had
been centred on others, but several of the finest promise had
died, several had not proved worthy enough, some, alas ! had fallen
to the depths. Of the three, Yesaya Mwasi was of the Tonga tribe,
a clever, vivacious orator who could read the New Testament in
Greek ; Hezekiah Tweya was of the Ngoni, a man of soul, humble,
serious, and patient ; Jonathan Chirwa was of the Tumbuka, a big,
active, capable man, and a writer of hymns. The ordination service
was held at Bandawe on 17th May. The church, seated for 1600,
was filled to overflowing by church members alone ; but those
gathering about the building numbered nearly 6000 persons. When
the three Africans, representatives of tribes that were once bitter
foes, knelt down together in the love of a common Lord and
Dr. Laws laid his hands upon them, his heart was filled with
thanksgiving that he had lived to see his dream realized.

Witnesses of this red-letter event at Bandawe were Dr. Living-
stone Wilson and his sister, on their way to Chitambo district, where
they were to settle, -along with Mr. Moffat, grandson of Dr. Moffat
and nephew of Mrs. Livingstone — surely a striking conjunction
of circumstances. Along with their mother — Dr. Livingstone's
youngest daughter — they visited the grave at Chitambo. So where
this great missionary explorer died a missionary physician of his
own blood took up his work.

And that these happenings might not want a chronicler, there
came at the same time another deputy from Scotland with a keen
eye and a graphic pen, the Rev. J. H. Morrison, M.A., author of
On the Trail of the Pioneers, who gave his impressions of the ordina-
tion in Streams in the Desert. He was fascinated by the Doctor.
" In aspect a stalwart Scots farmer, quiet and observant, with the
fire of a great passion burning deep in his hazel eyes. . . . One of
the world's supreme workers, great in conception, tireless in execu-
tion, with an ardour which age and labour cannot quench. A great
figure indeed ! one of the greatest of our age and country, and
worthy to be set beside that of Livingstone. It may be said without

348 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

fear of contradiction, there is no greater name in the missionary
history of any Church than the name of Laws of Livingston: a."

In view of the creation of a native ministry the Doctor had
planned another step forward towards self-support on the part
of the native church. For some years evangelists had been pro-
vided for by the congregations from which they came, and now
he proposed a Central Fund to secure for all native pastors an
adequate minimum stipend, the natives themselves fixing the
amount and the congregations raising it without outside help.
The scheme was adopted, and it at once brought the Christians
face to face with what they gave and had to give for the support
of their own ministry, and proved a salutary stimulus in fostering
the grace of liberality.

In May also the Union of the Presbyteries of Livingstonia and
Blantyre was sanctioned by the General Assemblies in Scotland,
thus practically realizing the desire of the Doctor in 1875 when he
wished the two Missions to be one. The Livingstonia Committee,
which had managed the Mission and provided for it financially
from the beginning, was also merged into the General Foreign Mission
Committee of the Church, the Women's Foreign Mission Committee
taking over the women's side of the work. The Doctor could not
regard the passing of the Committee without regret, but he realized
the necessity for the step and hoped for the best.

A few weeks later the Governor paid his visit to Livingstonia,
driving up from the Lake side in a motor-cycle side-car ; for such
were now becoming common in the Mission. Like his predecessors,
he was deeply interested in all he saw. The Station was in its full
flood of activity, and never presented a more animated, a more
inspiring, a more hopeful scene.

Then, with the irony which seems incidental to mortal affairs,
the tide turned and the Doctor stood facing tragedy.

XXVII. The World War

A cryptic message referring to possible movements of troops
puzzled him : then his thoughts travelled back to a conversation
he once had with a distinguished German, one of the signatories
of the Peace Manifesto, who was in favour with Court circles at
Berlin. They had discussed the relations between England and
Germany, and the German showed himself an ardent advocate of
peace — " but," he added, " of course it must be peace on Germany's

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350 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

terms." From that moment the Doctor believed in the inevit-
ability of war with Germany.

Did this telegram, taken in conjunction with the troubled state
of Europe, mean that the clash had come ? Within a few days the
question was answered, and very soberly he stood looking across
the Lake to German territory and thought of the position of Living-
stonia and the stations at Karonga, where Mr. Mackenzie was now
in charge, and at Mwenzo on the edge of the enemy country on the
Tanganyika plateau, and of the peril in which they all stood.
Where was the German armed steamer Wissmann ? Germans
came down to Karonga inquiring about European affairs, but before
they heard of the declaration of war the British gunboat Gwendolen
crept up to the harbour where the Wissmann was lying, fired a few
shots, and took the astonished Commander and engineer prisoners.
The Lake was, so far, safe.

The Germans, however, had n,ooo trained natives under
efficient European Officers, and there was bound to be severe fight-
ing and much bloodshed. Though better neighbours and better
colonists than the Portuguese they were — not without reason — dis-
liked by the natives, who longed to see the British in possession. Still
these same natives respected the fighting powers of their masters,
and would, no doubt, prove loyal. As for Europe, the Doctor
believed that " the Hohenzollerns would be discarded and a republic
or two set up." Writing to the Governor, he remarked : " It is a
strange thing that scarcely a nation can stand forty years of pros-
perity without forgetting God and requiring drastic measures to.
bring it back to Him." He was not sermonizing, he added, but
stating a scientific fact.

A cause of anxiety was the position of Miss Laws, who had been
in the Austrian Tyrol with her aunt ; it was not till some months
later that he learnt both had escaped by the last train leaving for
Milan.

The Doctor's first concern was to calm the natives. They
declared that they had heard of the outbreak of war before the
Europeans : some went further : " The foxes have been coming
and barking close to our houses, and even on to the verandah.
We knew that a war was coming, and here it is." Sensing the
gigantic character of the disturbance, they became troubled and
restless. As native soldiers began to be called up and carriers
requisitioned, word went through the villages that a great battle
was impending. Many disappeared into the bush. At the Institu-
tion the students grew anxious : some, fearing for wives and

THE WORLD WAR 351

children, asked leave to go home. The Doctor saw his carefully-built-
up work falling to pieces. With clear prevision he wrote to his
colleagues : " This means a time of great stress at home as well as
here : the funds at the disposal of the Foreign Mission Committee
will be curtailed, and our grants will be reduced. We must stop
all new work for the present, and be as economical as possible.
It may be necessary to urge self-support more than ever." He
asked them to go on with the usual routine in order to allay the
fears of the people and prevent any risk of the Government being
embarrassed. Word came from Dr. Chisholm, Mwenzo, stating
that he and the ladies had been asked by the Magistrate to remove
south. " Sit tight," telegraphed the Doctor; " allay panic ; con-
tinue work as usual."

He made preparations for providing a base hospital and supply-
ing flour and other foodstuffs — orders for large quantities had
already arrived. He also fixed up a telephone in his bedroom,
which at night was switched on to the telegraph office at the Lake ;
this gave more confidence to the black boy at his post there, and
enabled Karonga or Zomba to call him up. All news coming in
he typed and manifolded and sent to the stations.

Remembering the havoc wrought amongst the people by the
troops during the Mlozi War, which gave the medical missionaries
fifteen years' strenuous work, he wrote to the authorities pressing
upon their attention the need for measures to safeguard the interests
of morality. He also printed and sent for free distribution a
temperance pledge form in order to promote sobriety and efficiency
amongst the men. But evil was soon in full swing at the north
end, and the missionaries saw before them conditions that would
take another decade or two to undo.

Through the local German and British commanding officers the
Doctor received a letter from his friend, the Rev. Oscar Gemuseus,
of the Moravian Mission in German East Africa, who wrote
to him as senior unofficial member of the Legislative Council.
Penned in great anguish of spirit, it appealed to him to use his
influence to secure an agreement by which there should be no
hostilities in East Africa. " What would Livingstone think of such
a foolish fight ? . . . This poor earth worried and torn by the
wickedness of mankind ! "

The Military and Government, however, while sympathizing
with the spirit of the communication, pointed out that war between
European Powers automatically involved their colonies, and all
they could do was to carry on the conflict according to humane and

352 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

honourable methods, and sternly to eliminate all the practices and
outrages usual amongst savage combatants. With this the Doctor
agreed, and in a kind reply intimated proposals which, if carried out,
would mitigate greatly the horrors of the campaign. The Political
Agent in sending it on offered to meet the German Commander
and arrange matters on the lines laid down.

It was curious that another letter which the Doctor received,
this time from Berlin, asking for information concerning prisoners
and wounded, should come from the same German whose words
had so strongly impressed him years before.

In September came the first clash : the German forces crossed
the river Songwe, attacked Karonga, but were repulsed after des-
perate fighting. Matters then became so critical on the plateau
that Dr. Chisholm and the other members of the Mission at Mwenzo
retired and camped in the bush 30 miles south, where work was
carried on and a teachers' school held. A brave native teacher
clung to Mwenzo and burnt a kiln-full of tiles to roof the church
before the rains set in, always clearing out at night to escape enemy
marauders.

Before dawn on 12th October, the anniversary which the
Doctor never forgot, he was startled by peremptory knocking,
and flunking war messages had arrived, sprang to the door. It
was a little company with a man in a hammock ; the latter had
been watching his garden at a spot 10 miles distant during the
night to keep off the wild pigs, and hearing a sound behind him
turned, and seeing what he took to be a boar threw his spear.
A scream of agony made him rush forward. It was his brother,
transfixed in the abdomen. All day the Doctor and his helpers
were busy with the case, which, however, was hopeless. The man
died at sunset.

That night, reflecting on the past, the Doctor could not help
remarking how strange it was that this region of the world, un-
known in 1875, and still one of the most remote and lonely, should
become one of the battlefields of two great European nations.

XXVIII. A Native Spasm

Early in 1915, what was called a " native rising " occurred in
the Shire Highlands led by John Chile mbwe and confined to his sect,
which consisted in the main of raw and uneducated natives of the
Anguru tribe. It was one of the ebullitions common enough in
areas where white and black meet and mingle, where the latter

A Patient in the Hospital attends Communion
The native in front is Yoram (p. 365)

The Doctor examining "Work in the Printing Office

Two

Native
Preachers

■

3

Edward Boti
Pastor at Livingstonia

Yuraia Chirwa
Capitao of the Station

The Doctor inspecting the New Church

A NATIVE SPASM 353

suffer from treatment which they consider unjust, and where, as a
result, some man better educated, more capable and more sensitive
and resentful than the rest inflames racial and religious passions
to an extent which cares for no consequences. As a rule, personal
feeling will be found to lie behind most uprisings of the kind. It
was so in the case of Chilembwe.

His headquarters lay next to Magomero, the extensive pro-
perty of Mr. A. L. Bruce, a nephew of Dr. Livingstone, whose
policy was not to permit schools on his estate. The relations of
Chilembwe with the manager, who happened to be called Living-
stone, were very unfriendly : whilst the latter's treatment of the
natives in his employment was often unduly harsh. The
discontent in the district, fomented by Chilembwe, culminated
in an attack on Livingstone's house. He and two others were
murdered, and three women and five children were carried away.
No articles were stolen, and the women were treated kindly and
returned unhurt. The same night an attack was made on the
Mandala store to secure arms and ammunition, but troops moved out,
and the revolt was quickly suppressed, Chilembwe and several of
his lieutenants were killed in attempting to escape, and twenty of
their followers were caught and executed, and others were sen-
tenced to various terms of penal servitude.

Dr. Laws had always believed that Ethiopianism had a germ
of good in it which should have been recognized and wisely dealt
with. His impression was that the missions in South Africa did
not early enough introduce native leadership into Church life.
Ethiopianism was simply the expression of a natural desire for
responsibility, which, being unsatisfied, was exploited by mal-
contents and developed into a political movement. He believed
that any such tendency should have been met by a frank ad-
mission of the legitimate aspirations of the natives to have some
say in their own affairs. There was no need to be afraid of them
making mistakes — every race learnt through stumbling.

it was in such a spirit that in the Legislative Council he moved
for a Commission to inquire into the origin and aim of the out-
break. This was appointed. But in circles not favourable to
missions the trouble was already attributed to the over-education
of the people, and Mr. Bruce made the reactionary proposal in the
Council that all schools in the country under native teachers should
be at once closed.

Dr. Laws opposed the motion in a speech which was an indig-
nant refutation of the charge that education was responsible for
23

354 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

sedition and a noble vindication of the loyalty of the native. He
gave some facts to prove that education was, instead of a peril, a
strength to the Government. One circumstance he mentioned was
that when the wilder Ngoni were eager to join Mlozi it was the
energetic opposition of the educated Christians that turned the
scale and saved the situation. It was, he contended, the lack
of higher education which produced the disagreeable and even
dangerous Ethiopian movement, and this had been recognized in
South Africa where the governments of the various States had
been compelled in self-defence to found an inter-state college for
natives to prevent them going to America in search of it and coming
back with ideas unsuited to African conditions.

The motion was not pressed, the matter being referred to the
Commission which was instructed to inquire " into the effects of
mission teaching on the native mind and character." On this
point much evidence was taken. The attitude of the members —
who had no knowledge of the development or working of any
missionary agency — was at first critical, but, as they came face to
face with facts and policies and ordered methods of mission work,
they became more friendly. The fact that in the Zomba church
as many as 134 members were in the service of the Government,
most of them in positions of responsibility and trust, was in itself
a striking testimony in favour of higher education. A curious
feature of the trial of the prisoners implicated in the rising was
that none of the four officials could speak the language, and the
native court interpreter, who, during the three weeks of the case
acted as interpreter, was a mission boy, trained at Blantyre, and a
member of the church there.

The evidence of Dr. Hetherwick was overwhelmingly strong,
and greatly influenced the Commission. Regarding personal
relations between the races, the fact was mentioned that the native
was expected to raise his hat to the white man, and that the lack
of this salutation was a source of irritation to many of the latter.
Dr. Hetherwick pointed out that the European was himself to
blame. " I have seen many Europeans absolutely ignore a boy's
salutation. The smallest drummer boy in the British Army if he
salutes Lord Kitchener receives a salute in return. There will be
no difficulty if the European makes acknowledgment : it indicates
that two gentlemen have met and not only one." This put in
picturesque form the point often made by Dr. Laws — " Whenever
natives are treated with kindness, sympathy, and firmness, there is
a ready response, but when a haughty, supercilious demeanour is

NEW WORK 355

assumed, bitterness and contempt are roused and seeds of sedition
are sown. Such Europeans are enemies of the Empire."

The report of the Commission was lame and unsatisfactory
and, as Dr. Laws stated to the Governor, a serious defect was its
silence as to the beneficial results of responsible mission work in
the Protectorate. The Doctor sought to obtain a debate on it in
the Council, but the Government temporized, and the whole matter
was finally shelved and passed into the category of things that are
best forgotten. It had served to show that the Government knew
little of the deeper currents of life and work in the country — the
opinion of the older missionaries was that had men like Sharpe or
Manning been at the head of affairs the trouble would not have
occurred — and, as the Doctor remarked, it had emphasized what
was froth and what was true and abiding in the higher development
of the native.

Though unconnected with the rising, Charles Domingo went
down in the general cataclysm. The writer saw him in 1920 at
Mzimba, where he was employed in the Government service, and came
across his church in the bush falling into ruins. Charles appeared
to be conscious of his foolish conduct, but there was nothing against
his moral character, which was something to the credit of the
careful teaching and training he had received in the Mission.

XXIX. New Work

There would be -no profit in following in detail the events of
the war years. We see the Mission being gradually depleted of its
staff, Europeans passing into military service, either in the local
sphere of operations or in the larger fields abroad ; the teachers
being drafted off as scouts, interpreters, and leaders of commissariat
and transport ; the villagers being pressed in their thousands into
the " tenga tenga " or porter work. We see every boat on the
Lake hurrying troops to the north end, and an endless file of carriers
marching up through Ngoniland with stores to the same destination.
We see the German forces being driven over the border and chased
up and down the swamps and forests of East Africa.

We see the village life of Nyasaland being broken up, the schools
closed, social life disorganized ; the work at the Institution being
reduced to a minimum and all its resources being devoted to war
purposes ; a wireless station established on the plateau ; the
Doctor attending the sick and convalescent, providing food, oxen,
printing, planking, engineering, and other supplies for the military

350 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

— the total bill for the Institution alone at the end of hostilities
came to £5758 ; and at the same time in his own quiet, patient
way working out his ideas and realizing his dreams, bringing
into operation his Central Fund, laying (in 1916) the foundation-
stone of the Overtoun Memorial Church on the historic October
anniversary, ordaining more pastors, Andrew Mkochi, Edward
Boti, and Yafet Mkandawiri, and turning out the Tumbuka New
Testament, of which 800 were sold hot from the press.

We see Mwenzo Station, which was used as a military base
hospital, flying six Red Cross flags, raided by enemy levies, medi-
cines, stores, Communion plate and linen carried off, and all else
wantonly destroyed, and the missionary and the rest fleeing for
their lives ; and then, and at last, on the clanging of the Institu-
tion bell, we see a happy crowd of natives serenading the Doctor
and Mrs. Laws with " Tipperary " because Peace had come.

" The conflict," wrote the Doctor, " has had its lessons for our
boys. ' Christian nations are at war : is that the fault of Chris-
tianity ? ' This question came to them, and in its answer they
learned that there are still Europeans who do not own allegiance
to Christ. That still puzzles some of them, and troubles some of
them ; but it also strengthens them, for it shows them that there
is no colour line in the Church of Christ, and that if a man is not
necessarily in the Church because he is white of skin, neither is he
necessarily outside of the Church because his skin is black. The
war also has taught them something of the grandeur of the human
mind. They have heard and read of men flying in the air and
sailing in the depths of the sea. It has taught them also something
of the grandeur of the human soul, for they have read of courage
in the face of overwhelming danger ; of men giving up their lives
to rescue wounded comrades ; of men risking their lives to rescue
drowning enemies."

With the occupation of German East Africa by the British and
the deportation of the missionaries a new call came to Living-
stonia. The work of the Moravian and Berlin Missions was lying
derelict, and at a conference at Zomba, which the Doctor attended,
it was agreed that these fields should be taken over by the principal
missionary agencies in Nyasaland. To Livingstonia was assigned
the region which it had formerly worked and from which it had
been ousted, and at the request of the Governor the Doctor paid
a visit to the district, conferred with the political authorities,
and arranged for sending up native teachers, as no white man was
yet available.

NEW WORK

357

The one he chose as leader was Yoram Mpande, a steady and
promising evangelist. He coached him well, taking infinite pains
to instruct him in all the duties he would have to perform, and to
him and all who went with him he gave minute written directions.
As to their general conduct he wrote :

" I. You are sent as Christians to advance the Kingdom of Christ as far
as you can by helping the Christians you may find in the country to obey
God's law, and to preach the Gospel to and seek the conversion of those
who do not know Christ as their Saviour.

" II. To do this you must care for your own spiritual life by (i) the
daily private reading of God's Word and prayer, as well as by worship along
with your fellow-Christians ; (2) one day each week should be given to
carefully preparing for Sabbath services.

" III. The opening of schools should not be begun at first, but rather
find out and care for Church members and baptized children. At convenient
centres begin Hearers' classes, following the course of the printed programme.
Where there are catechumens arrange for classes for their instruction.

" IV. In all your dealings with the people be sure to be respectful to
headmen and old people, showing them that you come among them as teachers
and friends seeking to do them good and not as chiefs or enemies to take
their goods from them or to do them harm. To live like Christ among the
people must be your effort every day."

If any man had a difficult task it was Yoram. The natives,
bruised and broken by the recurrent waves of war, would not
believe that the end had come : they had been threatened by the
Germans, and now here were the English ; how were they to know
that the Germans would not return ? They would do nothing
until they saw white missionaries. When Yoram appeared they
rejected him : there were no native pastors in the German Mission,
and they had no idea that men of their race had advanced so far.
Even food was denied him and his wife and the teachers who came
with him. Then " let us hear him," they said. As he preached
like a white man they came back in ones and twos, and gradually
the opposition waned and work was begun.

When the Rev. D. R. Mackenzie took up the work he wrote :
" Yoram has received a warmth of admiration such as has fallen
to the lot of few natives. He is regarded as the friend and minister
of all, the final court of appeal in all Church matters. He has
established an ascendancy among them which has become an
asset to the Mission. And as with the natives, so with the Euro-
peans. Every one speaks of him in the highest terms, no very usual
thing when white men are referring to mission natives. No native
has a greater achievement to his credit, and if posterity does him
justice the people here will look upon him with reverence. That

358 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Livingstonia has produced such a man is an indication of what
can be done by missionary effort."

After examining forty-six teachers trained by the Germans,
Mr. Mackenzie said : " I do not think I had fully realized how
great was the gift Livingstonia had in Dr. Laws until I saw what
other men working upon similar materials and with similar oppor-
tunities had done or rather failed to do."

The War was followed by a visitation of influenza, as many as
1400 natives being carried off in northern Nyasaland. The scourge
kept the Doctor continuously busy, though his hands were already
full, for it was ebbtide in Livingstonia and the total staff was less
than what it had been at Cape Maclear. In 1920 the Institution
was being run by himself and Mrs. Laws, who took her share in the
work ; Mr. Adamson, who grappled with the industrial side ; and
Miss Irvine, in charge of the educational department, and in her
vacation doing what no woman had done before, spending weeks
in solitary touring in the remotest and wildest districts, teaching,
preaching, making friends with the women and girls, and all with
a love and sweetness and courage which only the Gospel of Christ
could inspire. It was a wonderful adventure, but she moved like
a queen through the dark and degraded villages, every one kind,
gentle, and deferential to her, so that she learnt to feel that she was
safer in Central Africa than in the streets of civilized cities.

At this time, when the vitality of the work was at its lowest,
and just before the tide turned again, the author paid a visit to
Livingstonia.

XXX. The Doctor's Environment

It was a strange experience, not untouched by awe, to float into
the interior of Africa, climb the flight of hills to the high plateau,
with its own ranges of heights, and come across there a vast lake
in the deep rift that splits the continent in two. On all that lonely
expanse of shining water one encountered no craft of any kind,
except close inshore, where canoes were seen being paddled or
poled along the shallows and round the rocky points.

On the hot breadth of sand at Florence Bay one was deposited
and left amidst conditions as primitive as those witnessed by the
first explorers. Save for a brick rest-house and store nothing
seemed changed. We were in the heart of Africa, and Africa
seemed asleep : the grey huts were almost invisible amongst the
tall grass, the goats were drowsing in the sunshine, a few natives

THE DOCTOR'S ENVIRONMENT 359

clothed in girdles of goatskin lay in the shade, silent, uncurious,
content. The water of the Lake lapped on the beach with a little
sound like a sob.

Into this atmosphere of slumberous tranquillity broke from the
bush at dusk a mob of perspiring, muscular blacks, chanting a
wild war-song, and as the moon rose over the dreaming water
we were placed in a machila and carried at a swift run up the road
which zigzagged sharply amongst the hills, the relay boys padding
alongside keeping up a savage chorus, interspersed with weird
gruntings and ejaculations. As we reached the cool heights, the
turnings were so acute that we appeared sometimes to be swinging
in mid-air, the precipices shelved away beneath, and through the
trees growing out of the interspaces in the rocks and the hanging
creepers one caught glimpses of the Lake, ghost -white, far below.
It was as if we were ascending, aeroplane-wise, to heaven.

By and by came black avenues, aromatic with the smell of
cedar, roadside huts which poured forth bands of women who
joined the men, lullilooing and clapping hands in unison with the
song of the men ; soft lights filtering through delicate traceries of
vegetation ; and at last, at 10 o'clock, a final rush and choral
burst, and then dead silence ; and at a doorway, silhouetted against
a bright glow of electric light, two figures with outstretched hands.

" Welcome to Livingstonia," said Dr. Laws, with a kind smile.

" Come away in : supper's ready," said Mrs. Laws.

It is not easy to given an impression of Livingstonia : the
Station is the despair of the photographer : it is spread over many
miles of rugged country and veiled with wood and jungle, whilst
its farther surroundings are all on an extensive scale and big with
height or dim with distance.

The plateau itself has an irregular surface, which has decided
the plan of the Station, the roads and buildings following the line
of the ridges. It is covered with masuko trees, the leaves of which,
firm and strong, stretch out like hands ; in a little valley in the
centre rises a stream which at one spot where there is an outcrop
of rock forms a pretty waterfall. The houses of the Europeans
are built at intervals round the crest of the precipice. They are
set in a frame of plants of tropical luxuriance and colour, and have
all a magnificent view of the Lake. The manse, a long low building
of grey stone, with a roof of corrugated iron which crackles restlessly
in the hot hours, is perched at the edge of one of the steeper declivi-
ties, where a series of terraces has been constructed under the

36o LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

superintendence of Mrs. Laws. About the house are blue gums
humming with bees, scarlet hibiscus, pomegranate, orange and
peach trees, and a great clump of golden bamboo.

Sheer below is a wide valley, half-wooded, half-cultivated, with
native villages too remote to be obtrusive either to eye or ear,
and a straight dark tract running two miles through the trees up to
the ridge — the route of the telegraph and telephone line to the shore.
Beyond the valley, in the centre of the scene, rises the massive
level-topped spur of Mt. Waller, and on each side and far below
again the dazzling waters of the Lake.

To the extreme left one sees the dim outline of great bays and
plains, and to the right tremendous masses of blue hills, through
openings of which the eye is carried south into the region of the
Henga valley and Ngoniland.

The temptation is simply to sit and watch that wonderful
panorama of hill and lake and sky over which the changes pass so
swiftly. Everything is on a grand scale ; nature works with a
giant hand and with giant energy. One can look down upon half
a dozen electric storms raging at different points along the Lake.
When one of these disturbances creeps up and envelopes the
plateau, something of the colossal violence of nature in Africa is
experienced. As the lightning dazzles and blinds and the terrific
crashes shake the earth, one waits, as the soldiers waited in France
for shells and bombs, and wonders if the next explosion will be the
end.

When the dark curtains of rain come sweeping down from the
loftier hills, it seems as if the reservoir of heaven had burst and
was flooding the land. No one can listen at night to the sheets of
water lashing down with such pitiless ferocity without being sorry
even for the wild beasts out in such a tempest. One's thoughts
go back to the old pioneer days when the missionaries were caught
without shelter and without tent in the darkness and horror of
the woods.

But as a rule nature is quiescent and there is rarely a sound
to break the monotony of the stillness. It is this intense quietness
which impresses one in Africa. You hear the sweet song of the
friendly wagtail, or the twitter of grass birds which are as tiny
as black beetles, the rustle of dry leaves as insects or snakes move
about, or the sough of the wind amongst the grass, the loneliest
sound of all ; but these seem only to deepen the quietude and the
peace. Even the natives do not disturb the serenity of nature,
except when at their drumming and revelry by night. Africa

THE DOCTOR'S ENVIRONMENT 361

might be called the land of the silent footfall. The people pass
noiselessly along, the women bearing their burdens of food or fuel,
the men with their spears and clubs, all barefooted and in single
file, only now and again throwing a word forward or backward
to their neighbours.

It is the Lake which dominates the situation. Sitting in the
manse, one has the sense of being at an immense height and over-
looking the world. The plateau is above the clouds. In the
mornings Mt. Waller opposite usually wears a snow-like cap. One
gazes down upon an ocean of mist which gradually ascends,
swirling past the house, and at last discloses the Lake glittering
in the early sun. All day the brightness of the water catches one's
eye : at this height it is always still and silent ; the distance is
too great for any storm to ruffle its surface appreciably to the eye.
The steamer on its monthly voyage cannot be seen save near at
hand and then only as a point minute as a midge against the glitter ;
more often it is detected by a thin trail of smoke.

Magical effects are often seen in the evening. One is startled
on looking at the Lake to find that it seems to have narrowed to a
few miles in breadth and that the opposite coast has the appearance
of being quite near at hand. The mountains 50 miles away
stand out brilliantly clear and sharp, while the sands and the rivers,
the trees and the precipitous cliffs, are all visible to the eye. Then
both sunset and moonrise often appear to be in the east : at sunset,
the west will be dark with a sombre purple while the sky along the
east, and the Lake will be ablaze with vivid colours through
which the moon will rise like a pale apparition.

Night comes either white with moonlight, a spiritualized version
of the day, or starlit and black, with the land a wilderness of shapeless
shadows and the haunt of things that terrorize the spirit. It is
the time when savage Africa is alive and active and all wise folk
keep within hut and house. If they have to venture out they go
with lantern and gun or spear. When one leaves the door he
glances expectantly, almost apprehensively, to right and left.
The least sound makes him start. It is the natural attitude in a
land that is unredeemed. Even civilized things appear bizarre in
the mysterious confusion of the night. The hum of the electric
transformer, the illuminated clock with its pendulum swinging
solemnly to and fro amongst the tree-tops, give one an eerie sense
of unreality.

The central figure in this strange and beautiful environment
is Dr. Laws, the creator of the Station which covers the plateau,

362 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

and still the brain and heart of the work. An apostolic figure, with
pale, deeply-worn features, white beard, and hazel eyes. His
dress is simplicity itself — a khaki jacket, fitting close up to the
neck, obviating the use of a collar, and khaki trousers. On Sundays
the jacket is white and the trousers black. In the open air he
wears an enormous boat -shaped helmet, which one usually sees
gleaming before he himself is sighted. His boots are large, square-
toed, formidable. These boots are eloquent with meaning.

" Do you know," the Doctor says, " what Livingstone looked to
first when beginning a journey ? — it was Young who told me. —
His boots and his mosquito net."

Studying the Doctor's boots, one begins to understand how he
has managed to do so much and overcome so many difficulties :
they are symbolic of his strong, resolute, plodding character. Those
boots would go straight ahead anywhere. Dr. Livingstone must
have worn the same kind.

" I was told," Laws says, " that when Livingstone was a boy
he and one of his brothers used to go out tramping together. When
they came to a pool his brother would go round it, but David would
splash straight through."

Both Livingstone and Laws trudged straight through life to the
goal of their achievement.

XXXI. Round the Station

The Doctor is awake at 4.30, and it is then that he has his
quietest time of meditation and prayer. When the staff in the
Livingstonia Mission and the people they shepherd are asleep, he
is bringing them to the Father of them all, remembering their
needs, interceding for them, praying that the divine blessing may
rest upon their life and work.

" Prayer," he once wrote, " is the irresistible molecular force
of Christianity. I cannot understand how a man can get on the
whole day without some time with his Master." He has strange
power in prayer, but of that one cannot write, though a single
instance may be given. Working late one night in his office, the
thought of a distinguished preacher in Scotland came suddenly
into his mind as one needing help. He was impelled to pray for
him and write to him, the letter also conveying a prayer that
strength and comfort might be vouchsafed to him. It arrived the
day before the preacher's mother died.

At 5.45 one hears the outer door shut, and sees him pass the

ROUND THE STATION 363

window and tramp steadily down the avenue through the chill
morning air to the offices. There he has worship with his own staff,
and then takes a class until 8 a.m. Mrs. Laws also teaches History
and English to a class in the manse. At 8 a.m. the Doctor returns
for breakfast, which is followed by worship with the house-boys,
who, squatting on the matted floor, read in turn from the native
New Testament ; the prayer is in the vernacular, but concludes with
a few sentences in English. The Doctor goes off again at 9 a.m.,
and Mrs. Laws teaches from 9 to 12 a.m.

We accompany the Doctor, calling first at the administrative
block where, at present, he spends most of his time : his apartment
is a combination of office, library, and classroom, and is exceedingly
tidy and spotlessly clean ; the wall is lined with cabinets contain-
ing correspondence and documents all carefully filed. A casual
examination indicates the infinite pains taken in every matter large
or small, and shows the Doctor to be a master of detail as well as
a master of general policy. One remarks on this, and elicits the
answer, " Well, why should Christ's business be conducted on such
loose principles as would, if permitted at home in any business,
bring about its speedy failure ? "

He exhibits the wages bill of the Station for the previous month
— £109. He looks into the last of a row of little notebooks, and
mentions that since the Institution was started in 1895 he has
baptized 4346 adults and children, including those at three out-
stations. Opening a large account book, he says, "This is our
Savings Bank ledger ; the balance at the credit of depositors is
£640 — who says the native cannot save ? " We go over his plans,
drawings, and estimates for past schemes, and realize that most
of them were on a larger scale than that ultimately adopted : they
were altered, cut down, and manipulated by more timorous men.
Passing through an adjoining room, where telegraph apprentices
are clicking the instruments, we descend to the tailoring department,
which is superintended entirely by natives ; the apprenticeship
here is for a period of five years. Then into the general store, where
Yuraia is in charge of what looks like a large drapery establishment.

" This," says the Doctor, " is the result of education. People
say, ' Don't educate the native,' but that is the way to raise the
revenue. There were nearly 8 million yards of cotton fabrics
imported into Nyasaland last year, 136,000 pairs of scarves, and
43,000 dozen handkerchiefs — the people's clothing. The more you
educate them the better it is for the Government."

" What salary does Yuraia receive ? "

364 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" Forty-eight pounds per annum, and he is worth every penny
of it — a most faithful servant and my right-hand man."

" Notice this brick building," the Doctor remarked on coming
out. " The lower storey of it was erected by the schoolboys during
their six weeks' vacation, as part of their fees. The post office
over there, with its clock-tower, was also built by them during the
afternoon hours. So also their own dormitories and the workmen's
houses."

We crossed to the industrial block, which looked like a large
factory. " We need," said the Doctor, " an economic basis for the
mission work, and here it is."

The hum of revolving wheels, the rasping sound of circular saws,
greet us as we ascend the stair and enter the carpenter's shop,
fragrant with the scent of cedar and other tropical woods. The
place is full of natives engaged in making tables, cabinets, carts,
flooring, shelves, and every kind of woodwork for church, school,
and home. Some of these lads have travelled far to be trained :
two who are doing beautiful inlaid work walked 1000 miles from
Bihe, Angola, and are here for five years.

" We cannot cope with the orders received," says the Doctor.
" We have always sufficient to keep us employed for many months."

Below is the technical school, where the pupils work for two and
a half hours in the afternoon, making simple articles and receiving
a training which adds grit and manliness to their literary acquire-
ments. Here, also, are stores of ironmongery, oils, paints, electrical
appliances, and " spares," sufficient to stock shops at home.

At the other end of the building are the engineering department
— where the stove of the Herga is still doing good service — the
book-store, where every year more than a ton of stationery and
books is sold to the natives, and the printing department, fully
equipped and turning out an average of 30,000 books, pamphlets,
and Scripture portions every year.

A bell clangs out. The Doctor looks at his watch — a gift from
Miss Melville. " We must get down to the Hospital," he says.
" There is a story connected with that bell. When Lord Overtoun
died, his servants, instead of laying a wreath of perishable flowers
on his grave, made their tribute to him a gift to Livingstonia.
They subscribed for a bell, and there it is."

The David Gordon Memorial Hospital is the pride of Living-
stonia ; it comprises a series of handsome bungalows amongst the
cedar trees on the edge of the plateau.

The Doctor has prayer with the dispenser and nurses, and then

ROUND THE STATION 365

holds a short service in the cool, green hall with the out-patients,
a sad and forlorn group of men, women, and children. He hears the
dispenser's report, and attends to any special case, and then makes
a round of the wards. There are patients whose wounds he exam-
ines with deft and tender touch, including a boy whose arm has
been crushed by a crocodile and a man clawed by a leopard ; but
there are others for whom he cannot do much, who have some
internal complaint, and believe they are the victims of witchcraft,
and have made up their minds to die — and will do so in spite of
everything.

Ere he is finished a native in a hammock is carried in and placed
on a cot ; he is thin and wan, and there is a piece of cord tied round
his head. The Doctor, helped by the dispenser, examines him ;
his friends stand by watching, the three native nurses, clothed in
overalls and apron above a khaki dress trimmed with red, watch
near ; the other patients half-raise themselves and eye the pro-
ceedings with deep interest : the silence in the ward is intense.

Presently the Doctor straightens himself. " Pneumonia and
pleurisy," he says.

Coming out, he remarks, " The boy with the crushed arm is to
be operated on, but I am waiting on Dr. Elmslie to come and assist.
Meanwhile he is learning to read ! "

There come cases, however, when he has to operate at once,
and alone. A native from Bandawe, whose leg had been smashed
by the falling of a tree, was carried to the Hospital a few days later ;
the limb was in a bad condition through delay and neglect, and an
immediate operation was necessary. Mrs. Laws administered the
chloroform and the Doctor amputated. " It looks like old days,"
the Doctor remarked.

" Yoram Nkata, the dispenser," he adds, " is a first-rate man,
capable and thoughtful ; he never troubles me during the night
except in some special case like this, when he reports how the
patient is."

At noon the Doctor returns to the manse. Dinner is followed
by a period of rest and private prayer throughout the Station, and
work is resumed at 2 p.m. We visit the homestead at the lower
end of the plateau, a spacious block of offices and barns flanked by
a tower, from which comes the hum of the milling machines. The
mill at present is going day and night.

All about are orchards and gardens with great clusters of
bamboos.

" Why bamboos ? " I ask.

366 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

" To provide poles for the machilas," replies the Doctor.

Farther down is the quarry, on the face of which men are drilling
rock, unconscious that they have before them one of the finest
views in Africa. In the mason's yard a score of men and boys are
busy chiselling all kinds of plain and ornamental work. One
pauses at a memorial stone to James Stewart, C.E. : it is to take
the place of the iron pillar which the Arabs broke up in order to
use the pieces as bullets. The inscription — the Doctor's suggestion
— is :

" Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make His paths straight."

A fitting motto for a missionary engineer in Africa.

In the woods below, two miles from the Station, is the Power-
House, which is run by trained natives. To-day there is something
wrong with one of the turbines, and the Doctor takes his coat off,
and, sixty-nine though he is, works amongst the machinery with
the energy of a young mechanic. We have to leave him there,
and later, after many hours of toil, he appears at the manse, throws
open the door of the dining-room, coatless, shirt sleeves rolled up,
apron on, grimy with oil and dirt ; " Moderator ! " he laughingly
announces, revealing for a moment the spirit of fun that has never
died within him.

Away to the west among the folds of the mountains one sees a
spot of red. This is the sawmill and brick factory, a collection of
buildings snugly ensconced at the foot of a gully. One approaches
them along a road flanked by blue gums and sisal plants, the latter
intended to supply cord, which the men make during wet weather.
A 30-horse-power Pelton wheel supplies ample power to drive the
sawmill and brick-making plant. The capacity of the latter is
800 bricks per hour.

Struggling farther up through a jungle of grass and fern, higher
than one's head, we come to a path and lade of clear, sweet water,
and, following this into remoter glens, reach a wild torrent and an
intake drawing off the little stream, which is so vital a factor in the
life of the Station.

Not far from the sawmill a thin, red line straggles up Mt.
Nyamkowa : it is the roadway to the higher plateau, down which
the mighty logs from the primeval woods are dragged, many so
large that it takes half a hundred men to haul them.

All these hill-slopes overlooking the plateau are planted out
with cedar, juniper, and eucalyptus. The Doctor believes in
afforestation for Africa, and is showing the Government what can

ROUND THE STATION 367

be done, not only to supply building timber, but to safeguard the
country from the menacing peril of drought. Up to the present he
has planted four million trees on the Livingstonia Estate.

We return to the manse for tea at 5 o'clock, but the Doctor's
work is not yet done. Throughout the day he is constantly be-
sieged by extra calls, messengers on bicycles or on foot following
him wherever he goes ; and every now and again in the evening
also, some demand is made on his time and patience, and often he
has to go off, with lantern, to the office or Hospital.

Sundays are full days, full for both Doctor and workers, the
principal events being the morning native service and the evening
service for Europeans and pupils. These are held in the thatched
schoolhouse. Either the Doctor or native pastor, Edward Boti,
takes the service. Yuraia and Yoram are also good preachers,
and it is interesting to see the Doctor, humble and reverent, sitting
at the feet of these men whom he has taught and trained. Elders
take the prayers : they may be dressed only in shirt and trousers,
but they have a wealth and flow of language which amazes the
tongue-tied Scotsman. The native is not yet intellectually self-
conscious.

He is equally unconscious in matters of dress, though that is
beginning to pass. There are young men at the service wearing
European clothes, but not with ease : the bulk of the congregation
are economically unable to rise above the native fashions, and one
likes them best with these, and especially the women and girls —
the blue, red, and yellow robes or wrap, the bands of coloured beads
coronet -wise round the head, the brass necklets and the ivory
bracelets gleaming against the brown or black skin.

The singing is sad, there is no joyous note in it : the words may
be bright, but the African puts his soul into his music, and that
soul has been crushed and broken by the sorrows of thousands of
years. He likes the English hymns. " There is something in these
you bring us," he says, " which grips us in a way our own do
not."

At the English service the Doctor is at his best. He speaks
very simply and earnestly ; his illustrations are drawn from local
life and surroundings, and he puts Christ in the forefront. " You
have seen and heard many wonderful things in the workshops
and all about you," he tells the boys ; " your fathers and mothers
never saw or heard such things. But there is nothing so wonderful
as the chief thing we have come to tell you about — the love of
Jesus Christ." After a lifetime of hard and ardent service this

368 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Great -heart kneels in humble prayer and says, " All we can bring
to thee, Lord, are our sins."

Watching week after week that slightly bent yet sturdy figure
in the boat -shaped hat, trudging out in the dawn and coming back
in the evening from exacting and often irksome duties, methodically
and faithfully performed in utter unconsciousness of the heroism
of it all, one realizes that here is one of the essentially great natures
of the world, noble in its simplicity and humility, and in its pure
and faithful devotion to the service of God.

XXXII. A Talk on Ulendo

It is on ulendo, in the freedom of the endless woods and by the
streams and resting-places, that one comes to know the Doctor
best. We trekked with him for several days down the Henga
valley to Ngoniland, through grass plains, jungle, and swamps,
through dense woods where the monkeys raced along in the high
branches, and through a region terrorized by a man-eating lion,
with scores of victims to his credit — not long afterwards he sprang
out on a native policeman and his prisoner, and was shot dead by
the former. The journey made one understand better the fascina-
tion and the spell of Africa.

We had machilas, but the Doctor was more often on his feet
pushing on mile after mile through the long grass with a steady
swing that told of long practice. With his carriers he was kind,
but firm. " Dotolozi," said one, " is stern, but, like Mulungu,
terribly just." One day we were belated, and towards evening
halted for a rest. The men, tired and famishing, were loth to rise
again. One scowled and muttered as he turned away his head.
The Doctor heard, made a step forward, his eyes flashing, and
uttered a single word. Every carrier jumped to his feet, and in a
few moments were hastening off.

That was a weird night march. Thunder rolled overhead,
lightning flashed, and the wind made queer rushes among the trees.
The men stumbled on, with marvellous instinct for the right path.
Now and again would come a jerk and a stoppage, and on looking
out of the machila a lightning flare would reveal the white helmet
of the Doctor, apparently bobbing up and down in a river : he was
being carried over on the shoulders of a sure-footed native.

It was late that night ere the rest -hut was reached, and as the
carriers with the baggage never arrived, we had to lie down in our

A TALK ON ULcNDO 369

clothes in the darkness and wait for morning. All night, above
the humming of mosquitoes, one heard a faint whisper-like sound,
and in the morning found oneself covered with dust dislodged from
the roof by the white ants.

To the Doctor, experiences like these were but the slightest of
incidents : and so, also, to the carriers. Both gathered amongst
the rough grass in the morning, the Doctor standing bare-headed,
the men on their haunches, and while the thunder growled in the
distance and an ibis screamed past, he prayed softly in the verna-
cular for a blessing on the coming journey. As he finished, the
men uttered a hearty " Amen," and set off light-heartedly with
their loads.

Away from the burden of the Station the Doctor talked freely
about the old days and his work. While halted by the way, or at
night encompassed by the multitudinous minor noises of the bush,
he would brighten into a vigour which encouraged one to ask
questions.

" Looking back over your forty-five years of service, Doctor,
what is the leading idea it has left in your mind ? "

" God's guiding providence of His love, leading us and fulfilling
His purposes and our highest wishes by ways we knew not. I have
suffered a bit, I confess, but when things were worst God was
nearest. It was when I was in peril that I felt His presence
most."

" Have you never got tired of the incessant work ? "
" I have often been tired by the work, but never of it. I don't
mind work, but I like to get on the top of it ; it is only when there
is so much that I cannot get through that I begin to be worried —
and that has happened very often, I am sorry to say."

" Have you never been discouraged by your difficulties ? "
" I always believed that my disappointments were God's
appointments. Difficulties are in our way to be overcome, and
when they are to be overcome for the advancement of Christ's
Kingdom we shirk them at our peril. But I confess my heart
has nearly been broken sometimes with the accidents and failures
which I encountered in spite of infinite care and precaution."
" Did you ever expect to see such a result as this ? "
" Yes ; I never doubted, even in the darkest days, that all
would come right. I had God's word for it, and that was enough
for me. It did not matter, however, whether I should see the end
or not ; my duty was to plod on and do the day's work as well as
24

370 I.AWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

I could. Duty is ours : success is God's. God has been very
good to us ; it has been His doing, and to Him is due all the
praise."

" But, Doctor, if I may say so reverently, you have also been
good to God."

" No ! no ! no ! all the credit is His. You must not put me
in the foreground. God has used me for His purpose, and I am
grateful, but I want no credit. To have Him and Christ placed in
the background would be torture to me. I have striven in a very
humble way to follow in the footsteps of the Master. I have done
little. Men see the outward work of the Mission, but its inner history
and its crises have been passed through first in prayer with God,
under the trees at Cape Maclear, on the bow of the Ilala, in the
tent or room, and when the struggle had been passed there, the
rest, which men at times wondered at, covt v.ry little trouble.

" And there," he went on, "is Mrs. Laws "

Pride leapt to his eyes, and there was deep feeling in his voice
as he went on, a little shyly, for he has more than the average
Scotsman's reticence in matters of the heart :

" Mrs. Laws has been my constant help during all these years.
I cannot tell you what she has been to me. I owe more than I
can tell to her. She has been an unspeakable comfort. We have
come through perilous times together. Many a night she and I
never knew what the morning would bring. And don't forget the
staff. They have stood loyally by me all through. Some of them
have had it very hard. I sympathize, for instance, with the
artisans, for I know their difficulties. It is a far more arduous
task to make the industrial work preach the practical side of
Christianity — to produce good workmen and steady character —
than it is to go out and travel and preach. That is one reason why
I have myself stuck so much to the Station."

" Do you believe the native will become all you desire him to
be?"

" It will take some generations. We cannot expect social
development to go on at electric speed. The changes in Central
Africa since I entered it are greater than those which came over
Scotland in a thousand years. These changes, too, are not all on
the surface. We are very apt to imagine that European customs
of dress, eating, and other habits are part of Christianity, instead
of being to a great extent apart, and even to some extent antagon-
istic. Were Christ to appear at a dinner-party at home and use
His fingers in place of forks, what would people say ? Progress,

A TALK ON ULENDO 371

however, will come all the quicker if we can give the native the
very best training. It is often said that the highest qualifications
are not required for the missionary to Africa. The opposite is the
case. Africa takes far more out of a man — just as it can put more
into a man, probably more than better civilized fields. It needs
also the finest character. Here, if anywhere, one has to do Christ's
work in a Christ -like way. You see, we are all under the microscope
on the Station, and it is not one's preaching that tells on the native,
but one's life. One raw, cold night, when I was camped out in the
hills, the carriers came and lay down near to get the warmth of the
fire. I heard them talking, and they discussed every man on the
field. Next morning I said, ' Why did you say so-and-so about

Mr. ? ' ' Because we know him better than you do : you

know him on the Station ; we know him outside of it.' "

" Which means that missionaries are not perfect."

The Doctor smiled. " Some people think that by becoming
a missionary they enter a Noah's ark of safety. That is a foolish
notion. We are all human, men and women, and are tempted in
the same way as others. But one man is not the whole of a mission
or a church, and we have sometimes to overlook the man and think
of the work."

" Which I find you have often done in the past."

" In Africa it is necessary. You have to remember that when
a man is bilious and saturated with fever the words and actions of
his companions are apt to appear to him in quite a different aspect
from what they do when he is in a normal state of health. These
conditions demand patience, consideration, and forbearance. You
may lay down the best of rules, but unless you get the Christ-
like spirit they will never meet all the cases that arise for
settlement. With that spirit few will suffice, and the fewer the
better."

" I suppose, Doctor, you have still schemes and plans to work
out ? "

" My head is full of them, but it is now afternoon with me, and
perhaps more advanced than I know. There is so much to be done
in fighting the grim actualities of heathenism, both here and at
home, that I am apt to become impatient at trifling and the wasting
of time and strength over matters of secondary importance. Life
has been desperately real to me in Africa, and anything but reality
saddens me."

" I wonder if you will ever be satisfied ? "

" Not until Africa is Christ's."

372 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

When the ulendo was over, we drew out a letter from one who
knows the Doctor well, and read it again :

" Admiration for Dr. Laws led me to study the history of the
Livingstonia Mission, but before I finished, my admiration for him
had developed into something deeper and stronger. I felt that I
was not only in the presence of a second Livingstone, but some
one even greater, if that be possible. He possesses a well-balanced
mind, remarkably free from rashness or thoughtlessness, and
guided by good Christian common sense. He unites in himself
excellences which at first seem to be opposites. He is a hero, a
man of a lion heart, victorious over fear, getting strength from
danger, and bound the faster to missionary duty by its hardships
and privations. But his heroism has never been of the lower type
that shows itself in morbid enthusiasm or reckless self-exposure ;
it has always been calm, enlightened, and truly Christian, having
its root and life in his faith in God. At the same time modesty
is one of the chief marks of his character. He has never had any
thought of playing the part of a hero. His greatness is immeasur-
ably above show, and above the methods by which inferior minds
thrust themselves on notice. He is too sincere, single-hearted, and
unpretending to seek or accept the tributes that are really due to
him."

An admirable and absolutely true portrait of the Doctor.

XXXIII. The Crown of All

" You have seen the things that are," the Doctor says, " now
for the things that are to be. My life has been spent in trying to
change dreams into realities, and there are a few yet to be worked

out."

He plunges into the masuko wood near the manse. " Here is
the site of the educational block." Then, after a ten minutes'
walk through the tall grass, we emerge on a level spur projecting
from the plateau. It overlooks the whole expanse of land and
water, the eye sweeping round from the Lake on the north, past
Mt. Waller, across the Rumpi, and through the great blue gaps
in the southern hills to Ngoniland.

" The girls' dormitories will be here, and here they will carry
on their industrial work."

" They are very fortunate," is one's comment. " As a Mission
site, it is probably unsurpassed by any in the world."

But the Doctor's thoughts are centred elsewhere. " The

THE CROWN OF ALL

373

Gospel first and foremost," he says. " It is the order of the com-
mission and the order carried out by the Apostles." His chief
dream, not yet fully realized, is the Church, one which will be worthy
of the Livingstonia Mission and of Lord Overtoun, after whom it
is to be called, and of the incomparable situation it will occupy.
He has been engaged quietly at it for years, and not until he sees
it embodied and complete will he feel that he has rounded off his
life-work.

The site is a minute's walk from the manse on the highest
point of the plateau. From the doorway a view of the Lake and
Mt. Waller is obtained ; the mountains fill in the background.
The building is a composite one of terra-cotta brick and grey stone,
the corners and the door and window lintels being hewn out of
the quarry rock, and the roof is to be of uralite. A notable feature
is a lofty tower with a clock, which will be illuminated at night.
By day it will be visible over a vast extent of hill and valley and
up and down the Lake, and at night it will gleam far and wide, a
Christian beacon, symbolizing to all who see it that Christ is the
Light of Africa.

The walls are up to the windows, but he can only proceed as
funds come in, and some parts are to be left unfinished until suffi-
cient money is obtained. Not many know of the enterprise, but
contributions drop in : one of the last was a thankoffering from a
lad who had passed unscathed through the war. Love and grati-
tude, sacrifice and poignant memories, are becoming associated
with these rising walls.

It is the Doctor's pleasure, after the day's work is over, to
saunter to the buildings and mark the progress being made. One
evening we went up together. It was towards dusk, but still clear,
with the glow of sunset lingering about the hills. The Doctor
walked round and about, quietly contemplative and happy,
scanning the workmanship here and there, and describing the
various features. After a while he clambered up and stood on the
wall above where the large platform is to be, and surveyed the
enclosure in silence. As he stood, his strong, finely-chiselled face
and white hair outlined against the pale lemon of the sky, one felt
that he was drawing into himself ; an air of remoteness seemed to
encompass him ; and then, as if moved by some impulse, he took
off his hat and folded his hands in front of him and bowed his head
and in a voice of deep emotion he prayed :

" Unless Thou, O Father, build the house, they labour in vain
who build it."

374 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

So he began, and then he prayed in effect that the Church might,
in due time, be finished ; that it might be the birthplace of many
souls ; that it might become the home of Christ's people in the
district, to which they could come and obtain rest and peace ;
and that all the praise and honour and glory might belong to God.

For a moment or two he remained still, a strangely pathetic
figure against the dim background of the African night ; and as
one thought of the sombre background of his forty-five years of
struggle and strain, one's own unspoken prayer was that he might
be spared to see his beautiful house of God finished, and the crown
put upon his life-work.

As he descended, his first words, " I would like to see it finished,"
seemed to be a wistful echo of such a petition.

On coming away he pointed to a water-tap in the roadway
in front of the Church. " That is for a fountain," he said. " I
had it put here specially for the purpose."

" Thinking ahead ! " I said.

It was a night of exceeding beauty: the wide world of hills lay
veiled in purple mist, the half-moon was rising at the side of Mt.
Waller, and throwing a ribbon of silver across the Lake ; a soft wind
breathed through the fragrant vegetation ; the hum of an electric
transformer came to the ear, lights gleamed through the masuko
trees, a band of boys and girls from some class passed near with
cheerful talk.

I recalled what Dr. Livingstone had written : " It is very dark
and dreary : I may fall by the way, being unworthy to see the
dawning. . . . The darkness has settled down darker than ever.
It will come, though : it must come, and I do not despair of the
day one bit."

" I wonder," said I, aloud, " what Dr. Livingstone would say
to all this ? "

The Doctor paused a moment. " He would say," he slowly
replied, " that some at least of his dreams had come true."

" The people who sat in darkness
Saw great light;

And to them which sat in the region and shadow of death
Light is sprung up."

EPILOGUE

Past and Present

The hope of Dr. Laws that the successful planting of the Living-
stonia Expedition in the Nyasa district would open up the country
to other missions as well as to civilized commerce was fulfilled :
ere many years had passed, Central Africa was covered with stations,
and business enterprise was everywhere exploiting its resources.
But the expectation that the Nyasa Lake route into the interior
would become a highway of trade was not realized ; owing partly
to the surrender of the north-end of Nyasa to Germany, and partly
to the construction of the Cape-to-Cairo railway and cross-country
routes. Lake Nyasa became practically a kind of blind alley, and
fell back into its original state of wild and alluring loneliness.

It is Southern Nyasaland — the Shire Highlands — that has
developed into prosperity. Of the European population in the
Protectorate — now numbering 1500, 30 per cent, being women,
largely lady missionaries — the greater proportion reside there.
And it is Blantyre Mission that has grown into the city of Dr.
Stewart's imagining. Many lament what has seemed like the
retrogression of the Lake district, but not Dr. Laws. To him
the long period of freedom from outside interference has been a
blessed relief : it has enabled the Livingstonia Mission work to
evolve without disturbance by antipathetic forces, and Christian
teaching to obtain a firm hold of the people ere the tide of civiliza-
tion rolls in and produces that complex clashing of white and black
interests which is seen at Blantyre, and is taxing the experienced
statesmanship of Dr. Hetherwick to the utmost.

Events which, however, will profoundly influence the situation
in Northern Nyasaland are not now far off. A railway is being
constructed to connect Beira on the coast with the Blantyre line
and Nyasa, and within a year passengers will be conveyed direct
from that port or from Cape Town to the Shire Highlands, and
later to the shores of the Lake, and the whole of the Nyasa region

375

376 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

will be available for white settlement. The wisdom of the decision
which fixed the Institution of Livingstonia on an island plateau
among the high Nyika hills, and the policy which secured so large
a tract of land surrounding it, will then be more apparent. Living-
stonia will never have to meet the difficulties that face Blantyre,
even when the Lake district is well populated. It is instructive to
hear Shire planters, long resident in the country, commend the
foresight of Dr. Laws in securing a site which will protect him from
the evils of too close an association with white activities. There
are great possibilities before the Institution in various directions,
but these belong as yet to the order of the dreams which come
increasingly to the Doctor as the years go on.

While there is not much change in the physical character of the
Livingstonia region in Northern Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia,
the transformation on the human side is extraordinary. When
Dr. Laws entered Africa in 1875, the whole of the interior, then
practically unknown, was given over to the forces of savage lawless-
ness : it was a vast region, where cruelty, suffering, and blood-
shed prevailed unchecked. The people were riven into thousands
of independent units, warring continuously against each other,
every circle of huts was the scene of endless disputes, witchcraft
trials, beer drinks, and moonlight revelries. It was a country where
the thoughts and desires of the heart were evil continually. No
woman would venture on the bush-paths alone : she would have
been a victim of the first man who met her, and would probably
have been left stabbed to death. No man moved out without his
spears and club, in order that he might protect his own life or kill
a foe. Terror made it a sleepless land. " We want sleep," was the
cry of the people to Dr. Livingstone : it was their equivalent for
peace and rest, and expressed their craving for relief from the
haunting dread of attack and slaughter.

They lived on the minimum basis of material support. The
average man and his wives were well off if they possessed a hut
and piece of ground, a few fowls, a calabash pot or two, and some
calico and beads. It was not that they had no ambition or were
opposed to progress ; but the circumstances and conditions of their
lives debarred them from advancing. To be different from others
exposed one to the charge of witchcraft and the poison ordeal.
The jealousy of the headmen and Chiefs made it impossible to
occupy a better position than one's neighbours, the risk of enslave-
ment and deportation took the heart out of the stoutest : it was
useless to toil, to be industrious and thrifty, when the whole of

EPILOGUE 377

one's possessions might at any moment be .filched and one's neck
be fastened into a slave stick.

Their greatest drawback was the lack of any moral or spiritual
ideals to free their minds and nerve their energies : their religion,
such as it was, was a vague but real fear of the unknown. Nothing
had been evolved throughout the centuries to stimulate them into
progress. Their environment had left them unaffected; all the
subtle influences around them, the beauty and strength of nature,
the vivid sunshine, the Lake in quiet and storm, the rustling of the
palms, the flushing of dawns and sunsets, the nights flooded with
white moonlight or luminous with the light of stars, these, in
relation to the development of their character, were as if they had
never been. Not a single force bearing upon their lives had lifted
them an inch above the dead level of savage existence.

It was only with the advent of the Christian religion that the
bonds of the past and the authority of their customs were broken.
That spiritual power which has redeemed so large a section of
wayward humanity acted like magic upon the primitive heart of
Central Africa. Before Christ the most sodden Chief and his
wildest warriors bowed with a kind of instinctive reverence : and
in less than fifty years His teaching has transformed the land.
Everywhere now there is sleep profound : peace lies upon the
Lake, and the widespreading bush-land and the maize fields and
villages. Men still carry spears, but it is to ward off the wild
beasts. The faces of the women are free from the old sullenness
and suspicion, and bright with a new light : in the deep heart of
the forest, far from the symbols of ordered law, they travel alone
on the narrow path with absolute security and peace. From
every village the laughter of children rings out at dawn and dusk.
Individual industry is unrestricted, and steady workers have more
property than their Chiefs had in former days. Every one enjoys
the full reward of his labour.

All this is the result of the freedom brought to the land by the
missionaries of Christ. It is His law that reigns in Central Africa.

Captain Lugard remarked to Dr. Laws at Bandawe" that in
India and elsewhere the work of missions was never seen, whereas
on Nyasa it dominated the situation. It is the same still, though
Civil Government is all-powerful. But the Mission is the real force
in the community : it educates the people, covering the land with
a network of schools, trains them in industry, creates ambition,
gives them a standing in the community, satisfies their craving for
a spiritual background to life. It would be untrue to say that it

378 LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

touches them all : 80 per cent, are still heathen, but the spirit
which it embodies has penetrated into every valley and everywhere
has affected their outlook. With the majority, it is not so much
a question of rejecting the new way as of not having the opportunity
of coming formally under its influence. Each Station in the
Mission is responsible for a population of from 40,000 to 100,000
persons, and, so far, it has not been possible for the agents to touch
more than the fringe of their districts. Hence it is that Dr. Laws,
with unerring perception, is training up a native staff, for only
by Africans will Africa be evangelized.

There is pathos and tragedy in the eagerness and willingness of
the people to live the Christian life. These men and women,
with age-long habits of dark self-indulgence dragging them down,
turn longingly to what to them is the austere purity of the Christ-
life, and seek amidst surroundings that are more degrading than
those in civilized lands can conceive to keep themselves pure,
even a Christ is pure.

How terrible the back-pull of habit and temptation is no
European can realize. There is no greater nonsense written than
by some white travellers, who essay to describe mission work from
isolated examples of this or that " boy " : it indicates lack ot
imagination, of inability to put oneself in the place of another
less favourably situated. Think of the passions which have been
surging unchecked throughout the centuries, suddenly arrested by
the stern command, " Thou shalt not." It is not a wonder that the
old nature, penned up, and restrained by a moral faculty only some
years old, should occasionally break out : the marvel is that so
many succeed in resisting it.

One praises the heroism of the missionaries, but what of the
heroism of a native, with his inherited instincts, living in a village
saturated with lies and uncleanness, often the only Christian in a
community given over to sin, and yet a faithful disciple of Christ ?
There are some, formerly witch-doctors, head-hunters, beer-
drunkards, and worse, who have risen to heights which white
persons, with all their advantages, could hardly surpass.

There is no more touching experience than to travel through the
remote and lonely villages, completely isolated from the world,
and see the evidences of Christian life. As dawn breaks upon the
land, there comes the sound of a drum or horn, and through the
cold mists, figures, drawing their cloth or goatskins more closely
around them, make their way to the mud schoolhouse in the vicinity.
The men sit on one side, the women — most of whom have babies

EPILOGUE 379

slung on their back — and the girls kneel or squat on the clay floor,
many with Testaments in their hands. It is morning worship,
conducted by the teacher. All over Livingstonia these little
sunrise prayer-meetings are held, the Christians in the heathen
community witnessing to their religion, and receiving strength for
their day in village or field.

Fifty years ago the dawn would have seen blood-stained warriors
and a debauched people still dancing in celebration of pillage and
slaughter.

So have the hopes and dreams of the Christian pioneers in this
African land been more than fulfilled.

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LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

THE DOTTED LINES ARE THE OLD
SLAVE ROUTES AND FERRIES.

INDEX

Aberdeen University, 21.

Africa, unknown, 1 ; exploration, 2.

Anderson, Dr., Aberdeen, speech at

class dinner, 22.
Arabs, first meeting with, 67 ; spies,

74 ; war with, 238.
Aurora, 211, 287.

Bain, Rev. J., 212 ; death, 248.
Baker, Wm., 42.
Ballantyne, Dr., 299, 300, 337.
Bandawe, 154 ; observing station

formed, 159 ; conditions, 171 ;

settlement, 183-185 ; work begins,

189.
Benzie, Captain, 164 ; death, 178.
Binnie, Thomas, 250, 337; death, 345.
Black, Dr., 37, 97, 100, 102, 105 ;

death, 115.
Blantyre, 105 ; situation, 106 ; mur-
der at, 160 ; execution, 164 ;

trouble, 169, 375.
Boarding Department begun, 114.
Booth, Joseph, 259, 339.
Brown, James. See Mvula.
Buchanan, Mr., 132 ; outrage on,

243. 251.

Cairns, Professor, 25.

Cape Maclear, first seen, 69 ; de-
scription, 70 ; founding of station,
72 ; life at, 73.

Cataracts, 52 ; arrival at, 62 ; march,

63.

Chalmers, A. S., 299.

Chikoko, 136, 191, 225 ; death, 286.

Chikusi, 122 ; visit to, 147, 224 ;
death, 254.

Chilembwe, John, 339, 352.

Chimbano, 186, 225 ; death, 247.

Chinyanja language, 81, 84.

Chipatula, River Chief, 60, 223 ;
Hill Chief, 155.

Chirnside, Alfred, 167, 170 ; pam-
phlet, 173.

Chisholm, Dr., 318, 351, 352.

Chitambo, 321, 347.

Chiwerd, visit to, 151.

Chloroform, first case, 92 ; others,

140.
Church of Scotland, 9, 123.
Circumnavigation of lake, first, 75 ;

second, 126.
Civil jurisdiction, 123, 136.
Coal, discovery of, 153.
Communion wine, 340.
Convert, first, 179.
Cormack, Isabella, 13.
Cotterill, Mr., 97, 117.
Crawford, Dan, 312, 319.
Crocodile incident, 157.
Cruickshank, Alexander (crofter), 12,

14, 16 ; (cousin), 13, 14, 21, 35.
Currency, British, introduced, 165,

226.

Daly, Rev. J. Fairley, 219, 322, 330,

337-
Derby, Lord, and expedition, 43.
Dhow, boarding a, 70.
Domingo, Charles, 194, 257, 277,

3°9, 327. 339. 355-
Drummond, Professor, visit, 212,

217.
Duff, Dr., 38, 46.
Dutch Reformed Church, 247, 265.

Eadie, Professor, 25.
Electric installation, 298, 306.
Elephant Marsh, 59 ; Island, 90 ;

herds of, 128 ; hunt, 156.
Elmslie, Dr., 45, 219, 229-237, 249,

268, 284, 316, 322 ; Mrs., 222, 223.
Elton, Captain, journey, 125.
Ethiopianism, 259, 339, 353.

Faulkner, Captain, 51.

Flogging case at Blantyre, 135 ;

at Livingstonia, 137.
Florence Bay, 78, 270.
Forsyth, Mrs., 32.
Fotheringham, Monteith, 234.
Fraser, Rev. Donald, 286, 294, 301,

302, 315.

382

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Free Church, Missions, 5 ; Living-
stonia scheme, 8 ; and Dr. Laws,
134 ; Union, 327.

Fruits, introduction of, 113, 139.

Fugitives, 118, 174.

George, Mr. Lloyd, 335.
Germany in Africa, 242, 252, 356.
Glasgow City Mission, 28 ; Medical

Mission, 33.
Goldie, Mr., of Calabar, 20, 264.
Goold, Dr., 46.
Gordon, Sir A. H., opinion on

flogging, 171.
Granville, Lord, letter, 176.
Gray, Dr. Gordon, 333.
Gray, Margaret. See Mrs. Laws.
Gunn, J., 124 ; death, 178.

Hannington, Dr., 194 ; in Ngoni-

land, 197 ; invalided, 201.
Harah, schooner, 46 ; voyage, 49 ;

parting company, 53.
Henderson, Dr., 334.
Henderson, Henry, 42, 52, 81, 89 ;

letter, 105, 113.
Henderson, Rev. Jas., 265, 277, 289,

328.
Henga Valley, 269.
Hetherwick, Dr., 323, 328, 342, 344,

354-
Hippo, adventure with, 157.
Hospital, David Gordon Memorial,

310, 340 ; opening, 341, 365.
Hutton, Principal, 332, 335.

Ilala, construction, 42, 45 ; on
Upper Shire, 66 ; on Lake Nyasa,
67 ; accident on river, 194 ;
passed over to Company, 194.

Industrial work, instituted, 114.

Inwood, Rev. Charles, 343.

Jack, Rev. J. W., 302.

Johnson, Rev. W. P., 183, 208, 225,

243, 250.
Johnston, George, friendship with

Laws, 82, 86, 125 ; goes home,

134. 263.
Johnston, H. H., 251 ; appointed

Commissioner, 254, 279, 280, 283.
Jumbe, 79, 127, 146, 152, 154, 158.

252.

Kaningina Mt., 157; station formed,

160.
Karonga's, 196.
Kirk, Sir John, 188.
Konde tribe, 129.

Kondowe plateau, 270, 274, 276/
name, 281.

Kongomo, 159.

Kongone mouth, arrival at, 50.

Kota Kota, 76 ; described, 79, 146,
152, 158, 252, 291.

Koyi, William, early life, 104 ;
Ngoni visitors, 122, 130 ; at
Chikusi's, 148 ; furlough and
return, 194, 200, 206 ; death, 222.

Kungo mist, 78.

Land, fight for, 279, 338, 346.

Laws, Robert, birth, 12 ; school, 13 ;
apprentice, 15 ; influence of father
and stepmother, 17 ; influence of
a smile, 18 ; student, 19 ; enters
university, 21 ; small-pox, 24 ;
Edinburgh Divinity Hall, 25 ;
incident at Lanark, 26 ; in Glas-
gow City Mission, 28 ; Hospital
work, 31 ; rescue experiences, 32 ;
Medical Mission work, 33 ; Stew-
art's speech, 35 ; interview with
U.P. Board, 36 ; introduced to
Mr. Thin, 39 ; Laing Missionary,

39 ; capped M.B. and ordination,

40 ; address in Aberdeen, 45 ;
father's farewell, 45 ; in London,
45 ; Cape Town, 46 ; at Algoa
Bay, 47 ; entering Zambezi, 50 ;
first night ashore, 53 ; at Mazaro,
55 ; call to Senhora Maria's, 56 ;
kills a snake, 58 ; first gospel
meeting, 63 ; second, 64 ; arrival
at Mponda's, 67 ; enters Lake
Nyasa, 68 ; begins station at
Cape Maclear, 73 ; first voyage,
75 ; held as a hostage, 79 ; grim
days, 83 ; his retreat, 86 ; visits
Makanjira, 89 ; hunt on Elephant
Island, 90 ; first chloroform case,
92 ; on way to Quilimane, 96 ;
waiting for reinforcements, 97 ;
begins translation work, 97 ; a
day of hunting, 98 ; in command
of Ilala, 101 ; his position, 103 ;
receives appeal from Blantyre,
105 ; visits Blantyre, 106 ; meets
Herbert Rhodes, 108 ; James
Stewart, 109 ; ill on the river,
no ; introduces plants, 113 ;
proposes new site, 117 ; runaways,
1 18; proposes trading store, 120;
receives Ngoni, 121 ; civil juris-
diction, 123 ; second journey
round lake, 125 ; at Blantyre
132 ; relations with Free Church,
134 ; handing over Blantyre, 135 ;

ig case, 137 ; translation

INDEX

383

work, 142 ; journey through Ngoni-
land, etc., 146-158 ; adventure
with hippo, 157 ; begins Bandawe
and Kaningina, 159 ; opinion on
punishing murderer, 161 ; meet-
ing with Mombera, 162 ; journey
through South Africa, 165 ; mar-
riage, 167 ; the flogging cases,
172 ; fugitives, 174 ; baptizes
Albert, 180 ; finishes Mark, 182 ;
meeting with Rev. W. P. Johnson,
6 ; removes to Bandawe, 184 ;
visits Ngoniland, 197 ; plans the
future Livingstonia, 207 ; starts
magazine, 211 ; Drummond's visit,
213 ; visit to Mombera, October
1883, 215 ; leaves on furlough,
218; at home, 219; in Berlin,
221 ; in Ireland, 221 ; prisoner
of Tonga, 231 ; final visit to
Mombera, 234 ; illness, 249 ; fur-
lough, 1891, 257; America, 260;
Calabar, 263 ; interview with
Rhodes, 266 ; search for a site,
269 ; attacked by lions, 273 ;
settlement at Kondowe, 276 ;
reissues Aurora, 287 ; furlough,
1899, 296 ; . student again, 299 ;
America, 301 ; negotiations regard-
ing Ngoniland, 314 ; visit to in-
terior, 318 ; criticisms, 321 ; silver
wedding, 327 ; elected Moderator,
330 ; Switzerland, 336 ; Murtle
lecturer, 337 ; attends medical
classes, 338 ; arrival at Living-
stonia, 340 ; missionary confer-
ence, Mvera, 342 ; member of
Legislative Council, 344 ; Wa^
action, 350 ; speech in Legislative
Council, 354 ; visit to German
East Africa, 356 ; his environ-
ment, 359 ; his work, 363 ; on
ulendo, 369 ; scene at church,

373-
Laws, Mrs., 14, 16, 45, 102, 160 ;

voyage out, 164 ; marriage, 167 ;

arrival, 167, 177, 188, 190 ; in

Ngoniland, 199 ; Amy born, 223 ;

as a prisoner, 232; 289, 296, 301,

312, 328, 358, 359, 363, 365, 370.
Laws, Amelia Nyasa, born, 223, 226,

248, 257, 350.
Laws, Robert (father), 11 ; school,

11 ; apprenticeship, 12 ; marriage,

12 ; elder, 12 ; wife's death, 12 ;
second marriage, 13 ; influence on
his son, 14, 17, 24 ; death, 293.

Laws, William, 11.
Likomo, first seen, 76, 127, 128, 228,
231, 249.

Lions, 134, 272, 289.
Livingstone centenary, 346,
Livingstone, David, explorations,

2-9 ; death, 8, 61 ; mountains

called after him, 76, 362.
Livingstonia Committee, formed, 9 ;

instructions to expedition, 43 ;

smaller committee, 143 ; finances,

292 ; end of, 348.
Livingstonia Trading Company, 144.
London Missionary Society, 144, 318,

320.
Losewa, 76.

Lovedale recruits, 96, 104.
Lugard, Captain, 245, 300.

MacAlpine, Rev. A. G., 265, 285.
Macdonald, Rev. Duff, 135, 165, 169.
Macfadyen, John, 41 ; leaves, 176.
MacGill, Dr., 36, 38, 116, 120.
Mackay, Alexander, 42 ; death, 116.
Mackenzie, Bishop, 42, 47, 59 ;

Miss Anne, 42.
Mackenzie, Rev. D. R., 328, 350, 357.
Mackichan, Dr., 332.
Macklin, Dr., 37, 132, 165.
Maclean, Dr. N., 345.
Macnee, James, 39.
MacRae, Dr., 135, 173.
Main, Dr., 136.
Makanjira, 88, 117.
Makusi Hill, 154, 181.
Mankambira, 79, 153, 157, 159.
Manning, Sir Wm., 341, 344.
Maples, Bishop, 250, 291.
Marambo, work in, 317.
Marenga, 4, 154, 159, 186.
Maria Senhora, 56, ill, 112, 113, 167.
Marriage, first, 142.
Masao, 62.
Mazaro, 52, 55.
Melville, Miss, 14, 15, 19, 20, 38, 212,

259 ; death, 300.
Milauri, 62.
Missionary conference, first, 301 ;

second, 328 ; third, 342.
Mlolo, arrival, 92, 139, 146 ; finds

lost daughter, 150, 187.
Moderator, Laws appointed, 330.
Moffat, Robert, 2, 45 ; Malcolm,

267, 276.
Moir, F. L. M., 144, 145, 161, 167,

177, 189, 212, 217, 221, 255, 345.
Moir, J. W., 144, 145, 168, 240, 255.
Mombera, 122, 155, 160 ; first

meeting, 161 ; hostility, 168 ;

son's death, 200, 216 ; final

conference, 235 ; death, 254.
Morrison Rev. J. H., 347.

334

LAWS OF LIVINGSTONIA

Mpango, 141.
Mpemba, 75, 88.

Mponda, 66, 87, 133, 188, 257, 258.
Mt. Morambala, 55, 57.
Mtwaro, 155, 198 ; death, 254.
Mvula (J as. Brown), 20, 114; bap-
tized, 202 ; with Drummond, 215.
Mwave ordeal, 94, 149, 201, 202.
Mwenzo, 265, 356.

Namalambe, Albert, 114 ; baptized,
181, 192 ; wife baptized, 218.

Namkamba, chief, 137, 141.

Napier, Rev. T. M., 345.

Ngoni, origin of, 121, 130 ; raids at
Bandawe, 191, 205 ; conference
at Bandawe, 196 ; country taken
over, 315.

Ngunana, Shadrach, 104, 115 ; death,
116.

Nkata Bay, 157, 160.

Ntintili, Mapas, 104.

Nyasa, Lake, discovery, 3 ; re-
visited, 7 ; Bala enters, 67 ; size
80.

Nyasaland Protectorate, 328.

Nyuju, 197.

Old Calabar, 35, 36.

Overtoun, Lord, 219, 297, 302 ;

death, 300.
Overtoun, Lady, 333.

Pamalombe, Lake, 66.

Patamanga falls, 64.

Poison ordeal, 94, 194 ; at Mom-
bera's, 201, 202.

Portugal, blocking methods, 9, 43,
144 ; aspirations, 167 ; expedi-
tion, 251.

Prentice, Dr., 265, 291, 343.

Qua Qua, 108, no.

Ramo-Ku-Kan, 62, 124.
Refugees at Cape Maclear, 118.
Rennet, Dr., Aberdeen, 22.
Rhodes, Cecil, 253, 285, 266, 297.
Rhodes, Herbert, 109, 125, 153 ;

death, 176.
Riddel, Alex., 42.
Road to lake, 295, 303 ; completed,

306.
Robb, Dr. A., 12, 27, 35.
Robertson, Rev. A. A., 28, 32 ;

opinion of Laws, 34, 40.
Rovuma, River, 78.

Salisbury, Lord, receives deputation,
244 ; dispatch to Portugal, 252.

School, first, 94, 140.

Scott, Dr., 212, 215 ; invalided, 221.

Self-help, first efforts, 209.

Sharpe, Alfred, 230, 274 ; appointed
commissioner, 284, 295, 296 ;
governor, 328.

Shepherd, Dr., 14, 16, 21, 23, 24, 35.

Shire River, arrival at, 56 ; animal
life, 58.

Shupanga, 6, 55.

Simpson, Allan, 42 ; leaves, 176.

Slave trade, 2, 96, 117; price of
slaves, 119; the traders, 119;
fugitives, 174, 241 ; end of, 282.

Slessor, Miss, 264.

Smith, Dr., 171, 241.

Smith, Sir George, 345, 348.

Smith, J. A., teacher, 206.

Smith, Professor Robertson, 44.

Smith, Mrs. (landlady), 25.

Sphinx, accident to, 54.

Stanley, Mr., 221.

Steere, Bishop, 89.

Stephen, John, 8, 248.

Stevenson, Mr., Aberdeen, 13, 19.

Stevenson, James, 8 ; convener of
Committee, 143, 212 ; resignation,
219.

Stewart, James (Dr.), student, 4 ;
proposal for mission, 5 ; visits
Zambezi, 6 ; appointed to Love-
dale, 7 ; speech at Assembly, 8 ;
report in Glasgow Herald, 35 ;
interviews with Laws, 38, 39 ; with
Young, 41 ; leaves London, 45 ;
at Cape Town, 46 ; at Algoa Bay,
47 ; securing recruits, 95 ; at
Livingstonia, 100 ; ill, 114, 128 ;
leaves the Cape, 131 ; blocks
Dr. Laws, 165, 179.

Stewart, James, C.E., arrival, 109 ;
nursing Dr. Laws, 112, 131 ;
flogging case, 134 ; journey with
Dr. Laws, 146 ; appointment,
165 ; journey to Tanganyika, 168 ;
begins road, 183 ; men attacked,
196, 212 ; death, 213; 269, 366.

Stuart, Charles, 247. 315.

Sutherland, agriculturist, 192, 201,
205, 206 ; death, 221.

Swinny, Rev. G. H., death, 227.

Tambala, 88 ; visit to, 151.
Telegraph line to shore, 306.
Telford, Miss Margaret, 28.
Thelwall, Mr., 97 ; shot, 133.
Thieving, 123.
Thin, James, 39, 45.
Thomson, W., 247.

INDEX

385

Tonga, country of, 154 ; character,

185. .

Trade, beginning of, 144.
Translation work, 97, 142 ; Mark

finished, 182 ; Testament, 220.
Tsetse fly, 113, 116, 343.

Union of Churches, 301, 327.
United Presbyterian Church, 9 ;

and Dr. Laws, 134 ; Union, 327.
Universities' Mission, 5, 6, 42, 45,

59, 61, 89, 182, 208, 291.

Voyage round
second, 126.

lake, first, 75

Wakotani, 67, 88.

Waller, Mt., named, 79, 128 ; climbed

270.
Waller, Rev. Horace, 45, 79, 138, 221.
Water supply, 297, 305.

Waterston, Miss, 45, 166, 176.
Wauchope, Isaac W., 104 ; insane,

106 ; drowned, 109.
Webster, Rev. James, D.D., tX.
White, James, of Overtoun, 9 ;

death, 219 ; James Campbell,

219. See Overtoun.
Wilson, Admiral, 46.
Wilson, Dr. Livingstone, 346, 347.
Wissman, s.s., 350.

Young, Edward D., accepts leader-
ship, 41 ; at Algoa Bay, 47 ; at
Zambezi, 50 ; enters Lake Nyasa,
68 ; boards a dhow, 71 ; work, 84 ;
leaves Livingstonia, 101.

Young, Mr. and Mrs., 46.

Young, T. Cullen, 325.

Yuraia, 257, 273, 327, 340, 341, 363,

3&7-
Zambezi, 10, 50.

»5

Date Due

Demco 293-5

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